Founding Features
by notnecessarilyinbetween
Summary: Helga, a young lady with the ability to create. Godric, a knight who fights for magic. Rowena, a street urchin with the most brilliant mind. Salazar, the last heir of a noble house left in the gutter. The story of how they meet, and the amazing world they create. Please read warnings in each chapter.
1. Perseverance

This series is my interpretation of the background of the Founders. Their lives, how they came together, how Hogwarts was formed etc. That being said, a lot of the things that happen in this story are correct for the time period, which is from about 500 to 800 CE. The beginning chapters are each founder's life story, and the start of it all is Helga Hufflepuff.

Please read warnings for every chapter, as they will all be very different.

 **Warnings:** Appropriate aged marriage for the time period, appropriate aged motherhood for the time period, postpartum depression, miscarriage.

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 _ **Chapter 1: Perseverance**_

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"Helga! Helgaaaaa!" a high pitched voice called out from nearby.

Helga rolled back onto her knees, and dropped the small buds she had been digging holes for onto the ground. She tilted her head in curiosity, and then giggled into her hand.

Her little brother Cledwyn came blazing around the corner, his normally pale hair a bright blue.

"Helgaaaaa," he sobbed and ran into her, nearly knocking her into the garden, "BETRYS TURNED MY HAIR BLUE AND SHE WON'T TURN IT BAAAAACK." His little body heaved with sobs as he pulled at his hair. Helga shuffled a bit and gathered him into a hug.

"S'okay Cled, I'm sure mum or pop can fix it back,"she smiled at his bleary face, got to her feet, and lead him inside the house, with him grasping onto her hand

She walked back to the front of the house, and was met with a timid faced red haired child hiding in the bushes.

"I didn't mean to," the girl let out a quiet noise, and tried to push herself back further.

"It's fine, Betrys. It's just an accident, come on, we can ask mum to fix it," Helga held out her other hand for the second small twin, and dragged them both inside the house.

~~.~~

Helga was the oldest of the Hufflepuff siblings. She had three younger siblings,her brother Einion, and the twins, Betrys and Cledwyn. They lived in a wizarding community just off the coast. Her parents were well known in the community for her dad's inventions and her mother's herbs. Their house was of moderate size, and covered with wards to keep the grounds fresh, and the people safe. It wasn't the largest house, and they weren't nobility, so her parents had to work to keep the family fed. Einion was the heir to the house, so he spent a lot of time with their father, Garreth, while Helga was learning how to be a proper young witch with their mother, Tegan.

Or at least that was how it was supposed to work.

~~.~~

"Mum," Helga peered around into the kitchen, and saw her mom looking over her shoulder and placing the roots she had been chopping to the side.

"Yes, Helga-oh my," a grin slid across her face as Cledwyn detached from Helga's hand, and rocketed over to grasp at her skirts.

Betrys moved further behind Helga, but clung tightly to Helga's hand.

"Shh, calm down sweetie, it's all right, here," her mother reached into her pocket and drew out her wand, a beautiful wand of willow with cat sidhe hair, and waved it once over Cledwyn's head. His hair then bleached back to his bright yellow, and his tears trailed off into sniffles.

Betrys fidgeted behind Helga, drawing their Mother's attention, "Betrys, did you do this?"

The girl hid herself in Helga's skirts, "I didn't mean to. I was just mad," she sniffled again, and peeked her head around to look around.

Tegan just laughed, "Come here sweet, it is fine, it was accidental magic, I know you can't control it. But you should apologize to your brother."

Betrys moved forward, and snagged onto Tegan's skirts, " 'm sorry, Cled."

Cledwyn grinned, "S'okay, can you make other colors?" He shifted and grabbed his twin, and they both disappeared out of the workroom.

"Those two," Tegan shook her head, and turned back to Helga, "Are you all finished outside dear?"

Helga shook her head in response, "Almost done, I just need to finish planting the Woundwort."

She moved back to the door, "Do you want me to come in and help with dinner after?"

Her mum smiled, "Yes please, and if we finish early, you can sit in with Einion and your father, but only after we finish!" She gave a fake glare, and Helga giggled, heading back outside to the garden.

She moved back to the planter, and ruffled her skirts under her knees to make sure they wouldn't land in the dirt. She planted the last of the Woundwort, and closed her eyes. She placed her hands into the dirt, and focused on what she could feel in the soil. With only a little thought, she purged the soil of weeds, and made it more secure for the plants to grow. She followed the trickles of water through the soil, and watched as they moved upward into the plants. She giggled from the rush of the magic, and drew back, her hands coming to rest in her lap.

"Well that was quite some talent, young lady," A voice spoke from the other side of the hedge, and Helga jumped from where she had been sitting, nearly tripping over the hem of her skirt.

Helga looked up and took a breath, as the man who was looking over the ledge was the talk of the town.

Sir Blevins and his son came from a long line of wizards, trailing back nearly as old as the Slytherin Family. They had recently gotten a house in the village, but had not been around for long before they had gone to one of their other homes.

Helga and her friend Eirwyn had giggled over the idea of the Blevins travelling all over the world, and even around the unconquered lands far to the East.

Helga realized she should probably speak, or be taken as exceedingly rude, "Umm...yes, sir, my mother taught me."

The man nodded and grinned a gleam in his eye, "Ah, you must be one of the Hufflepuff's then, your herbs are said to be the finest."

Helga's face heated up, "Ah, yes sir, I'm Helga Hufflepuff."

The man nodded again, "and how old are you, Helga?"

"Seven, sir," the girl replied, her hands grasping her skirt.

Sir Blevins smiled, "and to have such control so young, you have quite a future ahead of you." He looked back over his shoulder, and then moved away from the hedge, "Well, it was a pleasure meeting with you , Miss Helga." He gave small bow, and she curtsied with a giggle in response.

She watched as he moved away from the hedge, and back down the street. She giggled again, and moved to the front of the house to wash her hands quickly, and then inside to help her mother with dinner.

~~.~~

"Fine, fine, get out of here you rascal," Tegan shook a bit of water at Helga, causing her to laugh, "Go annoy your father then, he is probably starting the last lessons for the day."

Helga hummed and skipped out of the room, she moved down the hallway to the last door, which was her father's work room. She knocked at the door and waited for her father to call her in before entering.

Her father's room was her favorite in the entire house. There were scrolls everywhere, and little odds and ends that floated in place, some not having been moved from their precarious perches for years. The windows were glass that changed color depending on the amount of sunlight that came through them, though one would always turn bright pink instead of working correctly, which gave her no end of giggles.

"Have you finished in the garden, Helga?" her father had splotches of ink all over his tunic, and she grinned and nodded, "Finished helping with dinner too!"

Her dad nodded and ruffled her hair, and then pushed her over next to Einion, who was sitting on the floor.

"So Einion, can you explain to Helga what we did today?"

Einion squirmed and grabbed the notebook he had been slowly writing in, he placed it gently next to her and pointed at a line, "Dad and I started to move onto different writing styles, like comparing Latin and Cu-cumb," he squirmed, and their father interrupted gently, "Cumbric."

Einion nodded and continued, "Cumbric, and common tongue, and we looked at how the spells changed when we changed the language." He nodded brightly and looked back towards their father.

"Indeed we did, good job Einion. We found that depending on the medium-excuse me- what we wrote the words on, we found out that some spells work better on some than others. Interesting, it might have to do from where the materials originally came from, or how they interact with nuances of the words..." their father trailed off, and looked into the air for a time. He then shook his head, and gestured for the two to move to the workbench.

Helga loved playing with all of her dad's tools, learning how to scribe into leather, how to slowly shape wood with magic and intent. She wasn't allowed to spend a lot of time in there, though, as she had to learn from her mum how to be a proper Lady. She was learning how to cook and clean with magic, how to make herbs grow, and how to make a home. She was slowly learning how to sew as well, in which she was really glad she had magic, because she had tried it by hand, and it was very difficult.

In a few more years she might be able to get a wand, and she was couldn't wait until then!

Helga was a bit confused at times, when she heard her parents talking late at night. They seemed to think that doing so much magic without a wand was impossible, but it wasn't, because Helga could do it easily! Maybe they just got so used to the wands that they didn't want to use their hands? That seemed like a nobler thing to do. Using your hands for tasks seemed sort of like a peasant past time, and so Helga couldn't wait until she had a wand.

That night she drifted off to the snores of the twins, and the light breaths of Einion, and she dreamed of wands, and adventures, of flowers and long lost cities.

~~.~~

The next day, Helga got up early and whirled out of her room. Dydd Sadwrn was her free day, and she wanted to spend it exploring the forest on the edge of town. She grabbed her boots, and tugged them on, piling her hair up, and then whirling away out of the door. She quickly turned back, and grabbed a sweet from the counter, where they had been kept warm over night. She grinned and packed it away into her bag, and was off in the early morning light to the edge of the town.

She moved through the town, until her feet hit the edge of the forest. In an instant everything changed, and she breathed deeply. She bent down and undid the clasps on her boots, and threw them over her shoulder. She pulled her stockings off as well, and carefully folded them into her sack. Her toes wiggled in the mossy loam and she sighed. Whenever she entered the woods, she felt safe. As if nothing there could hurt her. She could explore and run and jump and fall into creeks, and climb trees like a street urchin, and she would never get dirty or hurt. She grinned and sprinted through the woods, today her goal was a lake in the middle of the forest. She hadn't been there yet, and really wanted to see what she might find nearby.

Eirwyn always scolded her when she went off into the forest on her own, but nothing ever happened in there, so she was fine.

After all, she was a witch! She could take care of herself.

She giggled and jumped over a fallen log, her feet landing gracefully into the mud on the other side. She moved through the trees, and stopped in front of new flowers that she would ask her mother about later. She hurtled through the woods, only stopping hours later as she heard the gentle sound of ripples, and water washing against the shore.

When she poked her head out from behind some bushes, her mouth opened in awe at the sight around her. The lake was large and clear, extending into murky blue depths off to the distance. The shore was rocky, with pebbles that gleamed in the late morning sun. Wildflowers dotted the edge of the rocky shore, and she could smell sweet berries nearby.

She giggled again, and hiked up her skirts, placing her boots onto the rocks. She jumped into the water with a yelp, and splashed around, looking at all of the fish swam away. She explored the lake until the sun was high in the sky, and then she sat with her feet in the cool water, and ate the sweet she had taken. She munched happily and hummed a tune to herself, when she felt the magic of the land shift, and the surge from the lake.

Something dark was headed to the surface, near where she was sat. She pulled her feet out of the water, but didn't move away from the shore.

A head emerged from the water, it was sleek and striped, with matted fur. The rest of the body soon followed. It was a strange creature, scales and fur interchanging on it's back and legs, with a fish like tail. It moved onto the dry land of the shore, and turned to stare at Helga.

Who stared back.

And then slowly placed the last part of her sweet next to her.

The creature moved over the ground, and as it drew closer, Helga felt a bit of nervousness at how large it was. I was easily longer than she was tall, maybe even taller than the Miller, and he was the tallest person she had ever met!

The creature sniffed the sweet, and then lunged and grabbed it into it's mouth. Helga saw the gleam of sharp pointed teeth-this creature ate meat- but could feel the magic wrapping around it, and knew it would be safe. The creature snuffled, and carefully slowly, placed it's head on Helga's lap.

Helga began to gently pat it's ears.

"Why hello there," she spoke lightly, and the creature seemed to huff.

"I've never seen anything like you before, you look like a fish but you also look like," she stared at the long snout and short ears, and the stripe that went down it's body, "you sort of look like a badger."

The creature snuffled again, and curled closer. Helga moved her hand from patting the soft fur on it's head, to rubbing over the scales that overlapped near it's legs, "Well you look like a badger, so I am going to call you Badger. If that is all right, of course."

Helga took no response as an agreement that yes, that was the perfect name, and she could continue to call the creature Badger.

"Well, Badger, this is my first time out here to the lake, and I guess this is your home, so I'm sorry if I disturbed you. You have a very nice home, lots of fish and berries and pretty flowers. Would you mind if I came back here sometimes?"

Badger raised it's head from her lap, and gave her a small lick on her chin, which made her giggle. She continued to pet its fur.

"Thank you Badger!"

She petted Badger for a time, but saw that the sun was beginning to move again down to the coast.

"I'm sorry, I'm going to have to go now, maybe next time I come I can bring some food from home and we can eat together?"

Badger nodded in assent, and slowly moved back into the water, disappearing without a sound.

Helga waved at the lake, and then ran back home, flying through the woods, and shoving her feet into her boots before she hit the road.

When her house was in sight she rushed forward and shoved the door open.

"Mother! You will never guess what-"

"Helga, dear, can you come into the sitting room please?" Her mother's voice drifted through the house, and Helga quickly shed her boots, and straightened her hair. She moved through the house, and knocked on the door to the sitting room.

"Come in, dear, we were just talking about you," her father was in the sitting room as well, and Helga quickly stepped in, only to have her eyes widen at the last guest.

Sir Blevins gave her a small smile, "Hello again, Miss Helga."

"Hello sir," She nodded, and took a seat next to her mother.

"So Helga, you already met Sir Blevins, yes?"

"Yes mum, I met him yesterday."

"You see, your daughter is quite gifted with magic, as I am sure you have noticed, and I believe an engagement between Helga and my son Brayden would work out well for both of our houses. I am aware that there is a lot we must talk about, but I would like you to know that I am personally interested in this endeavor."

The man nodded and stood with a smile. Helga's father escorted him out of the house, and Helga looked up at her mother with wide eyes.

Her mother smiled and ruffled her hair, "Look at you, already have the possibility of a marriage! Don't worry dear, it won't actually happen until you are older, but I guess it is time to start you on some more the homemaking work."

Her mother stood up and smoothed out her skirt, "From now on in the afternoon we are going to have to work together instead of you going off to listen to your father, all right?"

Helga's eyes widened even more, "But, but mum! I like learning with dad!"

Her mother nodded, "I know dear, but you have so much to learn, if you can keep up a good schedule, mayhaps you can sit in on some of the lessons, but not until I say so, understood young lady?"

"Yes mum," Helga deflated, and went back to her room to lay on her bed with a huff.

After some time the door creaked open, "Helga?" a quiet voice called out into the room, and shuffling footsteps moved toward her bed. A small finger poked at her side, and then she could feel the bed dip as two small figures fidgeted their way onto the bed, and laid down next to and on top of her.

"Helga, what's wrong?" Betrys spoke again, and lay a small hand on her cheek.

"I'm fine, Betrys, I just ... I am going to be busy from now on so I can't play with fun magic as much," she spoke quietly, and saw Cledwyn and Betrys exchange looks.

"No more fun stuff?" Cledwyn spoke from where he rested on her shoulder.

"Yeah."

Betrys nodded, with all of the stubbornness of a four year old, "If you can't have fun stuff, then we will make you fun stuff! I can turn Cleds hair lots of colors now! I could do that."

"I won't even cry!" Cledwyn spoke, and he fidgeted so he laid closer, "I promise, so don't be sad, please?"

Helga laughed a little, and then turned over, catching Cledwyn in her arms as he let out a yelp, "If you two promise to practice your magic, and learn as much as you can, I promise I will be happy, yes?"

"You s-s-swear it?" Betrys face was stern as she stumbled over a new word.

Helga hid a grin, "I do."

"Good!" Cledwyn clung closer, "I don't like it when you are sad."

She hugged the twin closer to her, and then they three got out of the bed, with the twins hanging off of her arms. She roared at them, and chased them around the house, until the three of them collapsed in the main room in a pile. After dinner, Helga helped clean up the dishes with a flick of her hands, and then went to her room to read.

Einion soon went to sit on his bed as well, "Is it true? That you have a suitor?"

Helga closed her book and nodded, "Yes, apparently Sir Blevins thinks I would be a good match for his son."

"But you haven't even met him!" Einion shouted, his face grim.

Helga swallowed, "Mum didn't meet Pop before they got married, and they worked out fine."

Einion didn't look convinced.

"It isn't fair, and mum said you weren't going to be doing work with me and pop anymore either! That isn't right at all! You can write quicker than me, and you can do the spells better, you should keep working with Pop!"

Helga sighed, he heart twinging, "Mum says if I can learn everything then I might still have time to learn with Pop."

Einion continued to frown, "I still don't think it seems right, if I am going to get married, I want it to be to someone I like!"

Helga smiled, and ruffled his hair, which caused him to make a disgruntled noise and try to get the red locks back down.

"It will be fine, Einion, it is a good match, anyway, the Blevins are a well known family, and I should be really happy to get this chance," Helga laid down in her bed, and as she closed her eyes, was barely able to hear her brothers response.

"Just cause you should doesn't mean you are."

~~.~~

"Really! Brayden Blevins!" Eirwyn gasped, and moved over the lawn to sit next to Helga, "That is so lucky!"

Helga shrugged, "I don't know, I haven't even met him yet! I don't think anyone in town has met him, and I have to study with mum now instead of working with pop."

Eirwyn shrugged, "Well I mean, he is the only son of the Blevins line, so he can't be all bad! And I think learning to be a Lady is fun, mother and I spent yesterday going over the noble houses and different kinds of curtseys."

Helga grimaced and let out an aggravated sigh, "But I don't want to know that! I want to learn how to transcribe spells and make things out of the Earth! I don't want to be trained to be some noble wife."

Eirwyn just shook her head, "Helga, if this works, you will have a good life! A noble family as old as the Blevins will be very stable, and you won't have a need for anything! My mother started talks months ago with the Smith's son, and they are very reputable as well, I see nothing wrong with having an arranged marriage."

"But you already know Drystan, and he has been smitten with you for years, it only makes sense that you two be together," Helga sighed and shuffled in the dirt, checking the leaves of the plants for bugs.

"Oooooooh, that's it is it!" Eirwyn burst out, a smile crossing her face. She shifted so the basket she was carrying rested against her other side, "You are afraid he won't like you! Oh, Helga you have nothing to worry about!"

Helga let out a sigh at her friends laughter, "I'm not afraid he won't like me, I'm afraid he won't like _me._ I know even you find it odd how much time I spend in the woods, and you are my best friend, how is a complete stranger going to react?"

Eirwyn placed her basket on the ground, and kneeled down, making sure her skirt didn't get stained in the early morning dew, she leaned over and gave Helga a hug, "Don't worry, it is years away anyhow, and that is only if it works out. Just try your best, and if the worse comes, you can enchant some trees and go live in the wood and become some kind of forest sprite or something."

Helga giggled and leaned into Eirwyn's hug, "Thank you."

"No matter what happens you are my best friend, and I will stand by you always, especially if Sir Blevins son doesn't deserve you!" She giggled, and stood up, fluffing out her skirts, "I have to go now, Mother will want to see these new clothes that were brought in, she says she is going to make a new tunic for father."

"Bye Eirwyn!" Helga smiled and turned back to her work.

~~...~~

Helga worked with her mother everyday, learning the proper ways to walk and talk and curtsey, how to address people, and how to run a home. She worked tirelessly, and after a year of training, her mother grudgingly agreed for her to be able to return to working with her father on his inventions. Every week she would go down and see Badger, and she would tell him about all the amazing things she had seen that week, and how her magic was growing and growing, a lot like the plants she had worked with. When she sat by the lake, she would sometimes close her eyes, and place her magic into the ground. She was slowly learning how to form things from the ground, and use the wild magic running underneath her fingers to make them do different things. She had a small collection by the lake that she hid in a cubby she had made. A small oblong bowl that made anything put into it fade into ceramics. A tree sprout that had leaves of all different colors. A small goblet that could turn any water put into it clear. She worked tirelessly to try to find out what kind of magic she was using, but never seemed to be able to bring it up properly when she was at home.

Her mother always looked at her oddly when she went out to work with the plants, and even her father had commented on how well the herbs and flowers were growing, and how their lawn was the envy of the town. Someday's her mother couldn't keep up with the orders, and Helga had to help her all day and into the night to make sure that the herbs were ready to be sold. After the first year, Tegan took Helga to the market days, and she helped sell all of the herbs.

Helga had only been to the market a few times before that, and it was always amazing. It was filled with witches and wizards, buying and selling, and all kinds of strange odds and ends. If there wasn't a rush at their stand, her mother allowed her to move between the other stalls and see all of the amazing things that were for sale. Some days, the entire family would come if their was festival during the week, or some of the olde holidays that needed to be remembered.

Helga was officially engaged to Brayden Blevins when she turned nine, but she still hadn't met him. She had heard that he was 13 years old, and that he spent a lot of time studying magic. Other than that no one really knew anything about the young Lord.

~~.~~

Helga grinned as she watched the flowers she cared for bloom larger and larger, until they stood nearly as tall as she did.

She closed her eyes, and let out a large sigh, and then looked back at the plants which had frozen in their rapid growth.

"Mum! Mum!" She laughed and ran back into the house.

"Hmm?" her mother was sitting in the family room, fixing some holes that Betrys had gotten in her shift. Betrys was always wilder than Cledwyn, and more free with using her magic. Cledwyn seemed to have more control, but sometimes had very violent reactions to situations.

"You have to see what I just did! You know those roses that you wanted to grow, but were going to have to wait for the fall harvest?"

"Yes?" her mother gently placed the shift to the side, and allowed Helga to pull her outside. when they got in sight of the planter box, her mother froze.

"I did it!" Helga laughed and spun to pet the sunset flower petals.

"Helga..how?" Tegan's hand covered her mouth, and her eyes were wide.

"I just asked nicely! And then I..I _pulled_ and then they grew! Now you can sell them in the market to that nice Lady who is always asking about them!"

Helga suddenly found herself in her mother's arms, "You have no idea how amazing you are, do you?"

"Mum?" Helga squirmed in the embrace until she could see her mother's face, which was shining brightly.

"You just..Helga, no one can do this, no one should be able to make flowers bloom out of season, and I see the way you have been making some of the flowers dance, and the trees _move._ I swear if you wanted to you could make the very earth work for you."

Helga looked at her mother with a pout, "I already do that, and I can make them magic too!"

"What?" Her mother stiffened, "What do you mean?"

"I can show you?" Helga made grabbing motion at the ground, and her mother smiled, but held up a hand.

"Let me get your father first, if you can really do that..."

"Of course I can, I don't lie you know!"

"I know, dear heart."

A few moments later, and Einion and their father joined them in the yard.

"What is going on?" Einion moved forward to where Helga was standing.

"Helga is going to show us something, " Tegan spoke and gave her daughter a small smile, "if you would."

Helga nodded and took a deep breath. She closed her eyes and tried to think of something to make. What did her family need? She thought back to weeks before, when her mother had been looking over things that she could add to the garden. There had been a really pretty fountain that they looked over, but it was too expensive to put in. The fountain itself was gorgeous, but the important part was that it had enchantments in it to purify the underlying magic where it was placed.

That kind of magic was important for any herbalist, because magic would slowly seep into the soil where it was practiced a lot, and they would have to pay for someone to come out every year to make sure the underlying magic wouldn't affect the potency of the herbs.

She took another deep breath, and called to the Earth. She moved over to the corner of the garden, and allowed her will to reach into the rocks far below. As she called, the earth began to rumble, and she heard gasps from behind her. She called the rocks upward, and allowed them to form a basin and a spout.

She focused then, because she hadn't ever worked with pure water before, and searched the ground to find it running underneath. She _pulled_ the water up, and focused her thoughts of purity, of clean, of safe, and then felt the trickle of magic spread throughout the ground underneath her feet.

She opened her eyes with a gasp, and would have fallen backwards if her father hadn't caught her.

She smiled at the sight before her. The fountain itself was made of pure quartz crystal, sparkling in the sunlight at every angle. The basin was gently sloped, and it made the water inside glow with the sunlight that was reflecting off every surface. The middle of the basin pitched up in stair steps, and water flowed from the one on top, and down the sides of the spiral down into the basin.

"See!" she sighed out, and then was whirled around into her father's arms.

"Helga..this is.."

"THAT IS GREAT!" Einion burst out and went over to the fountain, "How is that even possible, sister, this is amazing!"

Helga giggled, "I never made anything that big before! She tried to stand up by herself, but her legs wouldn't follow what she wanted to do.

"Oh dear, you used lot of magic for that," Her father swung her up on his hip, and she let out a yelp of indignation at the childish treatment.

"You are going to need to rest after doing something like that," her mother helped them back into the house, and Helga felt her eyes close.

She woke up with eyes blurring, and a cup of water placed gently into her hands, "Here dear, drink this."

She drank and grimaced at the taste of pepper up, "ugh, gross."

"That is what happens when you over reach yourself," her mother smiled and patted her head.

"You've been asleep for an entire day, it s almost supper now," her father spoke from where he was standing in the door frame.

"Oh no!" Helga gasped, and tried to get out of the bed, but her mother gently pushed her back in, "I need to see Badger!"

Her father chuckled, "We know dear, we are going to the market tomorrow, but if you hurry you can meet your little friend in the morning, and then head over."

"You mean I can go to the market by myself!" Helga grinned widely, and her shoulder shook with anticipation.

"Well, I dare say you can handle yourself!" Her mother laughed and laid a hand gently on her head, " Come on now, let's get some food into you."

~~.~~

"And then I made a huuuuge fountain, and the lands all clear, and it feels amazing, and I bet we are going to have the best harvest ever!" Helga flailed her arms widely as she patted Badger on the head, "and Mum says she is going to go look for a tutor for me, because my magic is apparently really awesome!"

A pout crossed over her face, " How was I supposed to know? I was just using magic, it isn't like there are set rules to what someone can and can't do!"

She gave Badger a small smile, and began to stand up, "I have to go now, Badger, I need to meet my family at the market."

She was halfway out of her crouch, when the magic around her changed. She shivered, and suddenly Badger was half on top of her, stopping her from moving.

"Badger! Badger, what are you doing?" the magic gave another violent tremble, and she shivered at the force of the malevolence she could feel.

"Badger, what is going on?" She whispered, fear touching at her for the first time.

Badger growled low in his throat, and circled around her, making is so she couldn't see anything besides his pelt.

"I need to go! I can't stay here!" She tried to shuffle against his fur, but he just grumbled and nudged her head with his snout.

"Why won't you let me go?" She grumped.

After a few more minutes of struggling, she relaxed back into his side with a sigh.

"Fine, I will just stay here and not move, does that work?"

Badger gave an affirmative snort, and closed his eyes.

After a few more minutes, Helga felt her eyes close as well, and soon lost herself to the oblivion of sleep.

~~.~~

When she woke, it was early morning and Badger was nowhere to be found. She crawled up from the rock she had been leaned against, and reached out for the magic underneath her. It had settled during the night, but there were still violent twirls the shifted through the usually calm ground.

She shuddered and walked back to her house in the early morning light. She opened the door and spoke, "I'm sorry! Badger wouldn't let me leave!"

She waited, but there was no response from anywhere in the house.

"Mum?" Helga poked her head into the kitchen, and saw that not even the fire was lit.

"Did they spend the night over at that inn near the market?" She sighed, and placed her sack onto the floor. She moved from room to room, dread begin to roll in her stomach.

"They...they would have told me, right? If they were planning on staying?" She shuffled a bit, and walked back to the front door. She took a few steps outside, and moved over to the garden.

"I guess I can start on the chores for the day then, they probably just stayed at the inn overnight for the festival," Helga moved to sit in the dirt, when a loud gasp came from the front lawn.

"H-Helga," Eirwyn gasped, and rushed forward, pulling Helga to her feet, and holding her in a tight hug.

"You-you, oh I was so worried! I thought you were dead, when we heard what happened!" Eirwyn was pulling her closer and closer.

"Eirwyn? What, what do you mean?" The dread in the pit of her stomach grew, nearly choking her.

Eirwyn pulled back, eyes wide, and tears streaming down her face, "Oh...oh oh Helga, you don't? Oh, hurry!"

Helga allowed herself to be pulled forward, rushing towards the town healer, "E-Eirwyn?"

Her friend just pulled her forward, until she was shoved unceremoniously through the door, "Father! Father! Helga is here!"

Eirwyn's father strode quickly from his patient room in the back, and his eyes saddened at the sight of her.

"Helga...come, Einion is in the back."

Helga moved forward quickly, "Einion was hurt? What happened!"

He grimaced, and gently escorted her to the back room.

Einion was sitting up in the bed, his face white, and his eyes staring at the wall unseeing. He had bandages wrapped around both of his arms, and up his neck.

"Einion?" She moved forward, and her voice seemed to shock him out of his stupor.

He looked at her as if she couldn't have existed.

"H-He-Helga," His shoulders started to shake, and she rushed forward to gather him into her arms.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't-," He trailed off and began to sob, Helga holding him tightly.

She wasn't sure how long she held him, but after a time his breath began to even out, and she gently placed him back into the bed.

She moved from the room back to the front, where Eirwyn's father was seated, his head held in his hands.

"Sir?"

"There was an attack at the market."

Helga nearly stopped breathing.

"Some sorcerer, going on about how muggles should pay for what they had done, about how none of us would stand against them..." he trailed off and took a shuttered breath, and then spoke in a whisper.

"I've never heard of the spell he used, black fire, everything burned," he breathed out a sigh and took Helga's hand in his own, "I'm sorry, Helga, your family...Einion was at the edge of the market, so he wasn't in the direct blast, but..."

"No..." Helga whispered out, a haze seeming to crash over her vision, "Don't joke, please, this isn't funny."

"Helga, I'm, by the gods Helga I am sorry, but they are dead."

Helga stepped back, tugging her hand from his grasp, "No, no, nononononnononono, I- I don't believe you, that isn't possible. They are fine, they just spent the night in the inn is all, you can stop the joke now-"

She was cut off as she was abruptly brought into a hug, "I'm so sorry Helga, but they are gone."

Helga's world slowed, and she felt her knees disappear from underneath her.

Her world was gone.

~~.~~

She and her brother stayed at the Healers for three more days before he allowed them to go back home. Helga had insisted the entire time, and she would not have them stay any longer.

She wanted to go home.

Einion's wound were healing well, and he would soon be able to move about again, he wasn't speaking as much, and clung to Helga wherever she went.

She didn't mind.

When he would finally sleep, she would sneak off into the garden, and stare at the fountain in the corner.

If she had been there...

If she had fought harder against Badger...

She was powerful, she had control of the earth, she could have _saved_ them.

It was her fault, she should have gone to the market.

It was all her fault.

Her breathing grew louder and louder, rage slowly filling her figure.

If she had magic, what good was it if she couldn't protect her family, what good was it if it was useless.

Her breathing grew rapidly, and her magic swirled violently from her into the ground. It built and and built, and finally she let out a wordless scream, making the ground quake underneath her feet. The trees trembled, and the ground shook, massive cracks were heard all around.

A gentle hand on her shoulder cut her short, and she whirled around in anger, her magic ready to _fight_ against whoever dared disturb her.

"Calm down, Miss, we don't want you taking the village down," Sir Blevins spoke calmly from where he stood.

Helga froze and her anger slowly dissipated back into the ground.

"That's it breathe, slow breaths, good," He moved to crouch next to her, "You have to control it, not let it control you."

Helga closed her eyes and let out another slow breath, the final violent swirls dissipating. She slowly sunk to the ground, and didn't even notice when Sir Blevins had sat beside her.

"We just got back, when I heard the news," Sir Blevins was speaking quietly, "I came over here as soon as I could, and it seems that is a good thing."

Helga looked up at his face with bleary eyes, and saw true compassion in his own, "Helga, you and Einion should not be on your own after this. Come to my house. You both can live there. It is large and quiet, and you both can continue your educations."

Helga stared up at him, breath hitching, but she shook her head, "N-no sir, it's fine we can stay here."

His eyes steeled, but he still spoke gently, "Just because you can doesn't mean you should, you and your brother deserve to be somewhere safe, somewhere where you can learn and not shoulder all of the responsibilities of adulthood yet," then a small smile flickered across his face, and disappeared quickly, "but if you want me to come up with some kind of logical reason..." he trailed off and thought for a moment, before nodding, "It wouldn't be right for my son's fiancee to be off on her own, it would be best if you were to live at my house until you were wed, and this way you could get to know each other."

He quickly got to his feet, and helped Helga to hers. He moved them back in front of the house.

"You don't need to answer yet, but please think about it, I think it would be good for both of you. I will come back in two days, and if your answer is yes, I will have you moved over straight away," then he stopped and smiled, "and if it is no, then the option is always open. Good night, Miss Helga."

She gave a small sniff, and then gave a curtsey as he left.

She closed the door behind her, and sank to the floor again.

She sobbed quietly into her arms, and then slowly made her way back to her bed.

~~.~~

The Blevins' estate was expansive, the house itself was huge, with wings that extended beyond the main building. The grounds were impressive as well, well maintained, and with a menagerie of creatures that Helga had never seen before.

She wasn't really paying attention to them at the moment, though.

She and Einion walked through the main doors behind Sir Blevins as some of his house elves were taking care of their luggage.

"Well, here is the main hall, off to the left is the family wing, and to the right is the guest wing. There are quite a few rooms left open in the family wing, as it is just Brayden and I, so you can choose whichever rooms you wish. Gimble can give you a tour, I am sorry I can not stay longer, but we are in a state of emergency at the moment."

Helga and Einion nodded, and followed the house elf through the mansion. Helga had never seen a house elf before but made sure that she was polite. She and Einion ended with room right next to each other, that had a door that connected the two. They could lock and unlock the door with spells, but left it open for the time being.

"What is going to happen to us?" Einion spoke up for the first time. Helga crossed over to him and gave him a hug, "Sir Blevins said that we would still be educated, and we can probably still work on what we did before, but we have to be polite."

Einion nodded, and curled closer to Helga, "I miss Mum and Pop, and the twins, even though they kept causing explosions. I expected to wake up this morning to Cledwyn whining about Betrys dumping water on him again."

Helga's eyes grew moist but she held back the tears, "I know, Einion, I know..."

~~.~~

A couple weeks later, and Helga had gotten use to how the Blevins mansion was run. She moved through the rooms with ease, and continued lessons with the Housekeeper, who had been a close friend of the late Lady Blevins.

Brayden had been working out in the country for the past month, and so Helga had still not met him. She and Einion practiced basic magic together, but she had not found the time to work on her own skills (and was also afraid of messing up the garden).

But today she had a mission, she had moved to the large library near the back of the mansion, and was searching through all of the bestiaries she could find.

She really wanted to know what Badger was.

She created a large pile of scrolls and books that she gently placed down on the table, and began to flip through them. Hours passed without her noticing, and she slowly turned page after page. She sighed, and began to flip faster and faster, and stopped.

The drawing on the page showed a large beast, a square head and large buck teeth, but it was the rest of the drawing that made her pay attention. It was almost exactly the same as Badger!

" 'Afanc, a magical creature that is said to live in lakes, it drowns and eats anyone who dare draw near,' well that is just silly!" Helga huffed and moved back from the book.

"And how is a large man eating magical creature capable of causing massive floods out of whim 'silly?' " a voice spoke from nearby, and Helga startled out of her seat.

A teenager was sat nearby, one eyebrow raised with a small smile on his face. He had dark hair that was pushed back over his ear, and striking grey eyes. Helga felt herself blush a bit, but managed to push it back.

"It is silly, because the Afanc I met is completely nice, and enjoy lazing about in the sun more than eating people! He does like dried meats, though," she trailed off and pursed her lips, but the teenager moved forward, delight in his eyes.

"You've seen an Afanc? Do you know how rare they are?"

She shrugged, "I've known him for years, I just didn't know what he was! He lives in the lake in the forest nearby."

The teen's eyes glittered, "Really? Could I meet him? I mean, I mainly study magical creatures, so it would be amazing to meet an actual Afanc, especially if it isn't going to try to eat me..." he trailed off, and flushed, "Oh, right, I should probably introduce myself right? I'm Brayden Blevins."

Helga's face flushed as well, "Helga Hufflepuff."

Brayden's face immediately flamed up, "Ah...umm...n-nice to meet you then, I mean, Father has spoken about you, and he told me that you were here, and I should have guessed because I never see anyone in the library, I mean, I use the library but...I'm just going to stop talking now."

He turned his face to look at a wall, and Helga finally gave into the giggles she had felt, she calmed herself quickly, and spoke again, "I can take you to meet him if you want, I haven't seen him since...since the day of the market attack. He wouldn't let me leave...I think he knew something bad was happening.." she trailed off and stared at her hands.

"I'm sorry about what happened to your family, well I guess sorry doesn't mean much does it?" Brayden shuffled his hand through his hair, "I-I hope that that bastard pays for what he did a thousand times over."

Helga looked up, and was surprised at the fire that burned in his eyes.

"Me too."

~~.~~

"It is just a bit further, this way!" Helga hopped over another log, and rushed forward to the lake.

"Fine, fine, let's just ask Badger if he wants to eat me or not first please!" Brayden called from right behind her, as he vaulted over the log as well.

When she got to the shore she took a deep breath; she moved towards the shore, and jumped into the water. Then she waited.

Brayden moved to one of the rocks that dotted the shore line, and stared at all that surrounded them.

"This is amazing, how did you find his place?" Brayden look around in awe,

"I always knew it was here, I can just...tell" Helga shrugged, "From what I can tell, my magic is connected with the earth, and I can feel the magic that runs through it. So I can just tell."

"That's amazing," he trailed off, and straightened, and Helga turned as well. A dark blur started to come close to the shore, but stopped far enough out not to breach the water.

A sad smile crossed her face, and she moved even deeper into the water, "Hey Badger, I brought some food for you, if you want to come out?"

The blur moved closer, and his snout peeked out about a foot away from her. Helga leaned forward and began to pet it.

"I missed you, I'm sorry I couldn't come before now," She carefully hugged him under the water, "thank you for saving me, oh!" before she could even move, she slid onto his back as he trundled out of the water onto the dry land,

"Well, thank you Badger, the water was nice though!" She giggled and slid off of his back onto the shore. She then gestured at the rock where Brayden was sitting, looking in awe at the Afanc.

"Badger, this is Brayden, he is a good friend of mine, and he wanted to meet you, is that fine?"

Badger whuffed and waddled forward skirting around the edge of the rock until he was able to press his snout against Brayden's hand.

"Hello to you too, Badger," Brayden moved slowly and calmly, and began to pat Badger's head.

"I want to thank you as well, for taking care of her," Brayden spoke quietly, but his voice echoed around the lake just the same, causing Helga to blush as red as her hair, and Badger to make a contented noise.

The three of them stayed there for hours, Helga showing Brayden her magic, and Brayden telling her all about the magical creatures he had seen on his adventures.

They went back every week.

~~...~~

"Come on Helga, come on!" Einion tugged at her sleeve as they hurried down the busy street.

"Yes, yes, I'm coming!" Helga smiled, she hadn't seen Einion this happy in a long time.

They finally stopped in front of a small shop at the end of the row,

"Ollivanders-Makers of fine wands since 382 B.C." Helga read out, and the smile on her face became even larger.

"Oh, come on, Helga, let's get our wands!" Einion opened the door, and she followed behind him.

The place had rows upon rows of boxes held in shelves, and a very small desk set up near the front.

There was a couch to the side, where a young man around Einion's age was sat. Helga hid a laugh because the young man had red hair that was about as vibrant as her own.

He looked up at the noise, and a small smile flitted across his face, "Well, that is an unusual shade."

"To you as well," Helga laughed back, "Are you here for a wand?"

The boy's face fell, "I was, but so far none have worked for me...I'm not quite sure what it means, honestly..."

"Sometimes it happens, child, it is nothing to worry about, rather, you will probably find something else that is more in tune with your nature," a voice from behind Helga made her jump, and she whirled around to see a strange looking man leaning against the shelves.

"Two customers, lovely, you must be the Hufflepuffs, yes, I can feel your magic in the earth even now,now, which one wants to go first?"

Helga gave Einion a nod, and soon he was trying wand after wand.

"So if you aren't getting a wand, what are you doing here?" Helga asked the boy.

"I'm waiting for my mother, we had to sneak out, you see. Father doesn't...well... let's say if he found out I was a wizard it would be unpleasant," the boy shrugged with nonchalance.

"I'm sorry," Helga frowned, how could someone live while hiding who they really were?

"It isn't to bad, honestly, mother makes sure I can control myself, and we haven't had any problems."

"And that is the one, Eleven inch, willow, with unicorn tail, surprisingly swishy," Ollivander finished with a grin, and Einion looked at the wand with awe.

"Next is you, young lady."

Helga stepped forward, and the man asked her to hold out her wand arm. He then stopped and stared at her.

"Oh my, well this is such a surprising day, hold a moment please," he then vanished into the back.

He came out with a small twig, and handed it to her, "Make that grow."

Without a thought, leaves started to appear on the twig, and the old man sighed, "Who would have thought for two in one day."

"Excuse me?" Helga asked, still holding the branch.

"You can't have a wand, young lady, none of them could possibly work for you. You magic is tied into nature itself, every one of these wands would only be able to handle a portion of your magic. Such as the young lord there, you will have to find your own balance. This is the first time in over four hundred years since this has occurred. And twice in one day," the man looked thoughtful, "your futures will change the way of the world, no doubt about that."

Helga frowned a little, but nodded and handed the twig back to the man, "Well, thank you all the same."

"No problem, no problem," the man vanished back into the rows of wands, and Helga turned around to find a matching look of disbelief on the boys face.

"Weird."

"Yes."

The boy turned, and stood suddenly as he saw someone standing outside, "Oh, that is mother, I have to go, it was a pleasure to meet you..."

"Helga Hufflepuff," she held out her hand primly, and he skimmed his lips over her knuckles.

"A pleasure, Miss Hufflepuff, I'm Godric Gryffindor, good day to you both," He nodded to Einion, and left.

Einon watched the boy leave, and tugged on Helga's sleeve, "Sister, while we are here, can we stop by the bookstore?"

Helga laughed brightly, "Of course, let's see if we can find anything interesting!"

~~...~~

When Helga was twelve, she bled for the first time. Brayden was sixteen at the time, and according to customs, it was time for the two of them to be wed.

It was a surprisingly large affair, as the Blevins were a noble family, and even after the attacks the Hufflepuff name held a large amount of weight.

Nobles from all over the land came, with presents, and stories, and Helga found herself swamped in all of the amazing wizards and witches that had appeared.

The wedding took place on the Summer Solstice, the day of growth and light, which Helga and Brayden found hysterical, as Helga's magic was found to wax and wane with the seasons, and was at it's peak that day, making everything so much brighter.

In place of her father, Einion was the one to set up most of the had grow tall and strong, had settled in his own skin, but was quiet for an eleven year old. Helga knew that the fates of their family still rested heavily on his shoulders, and she was constantly trying to help him move on, to learn more about magic, or travel, but she could see the silent weight.

In the morning it started with the chase, of Brayden having to find her in the large manor, where the multitude of guests milled about, using spells and charms to hide their presence.

It was said that if the groom could find his wife within the first hour, that they would have a life of good luck.

Brayden made the time limit, mainly because Helga's magic was overshadowing most of the spells, which later on she jokingly accused him of cheating because of it.

The wedding was grand and luxurious, flowers floated in the air, and magic rang heavy over the large groups of witches and wizards who had helped prepare.

At dusk, Helga and Brayden completed their vows.

The after party was pure chaos. It was the first time many large noble families had seen each other in years, and soon festivities filled the entire town.

Helga smiled and danced and twirled with many of the guests, and was finally able to rest along the sidelines as she found herself near the edge of the dancing.

She leaned against the wall, and smiled at the laughter and purity that surrounded her. Her magic was thrumming with life, and love, causing beautiful patterns to appear in the air and ground, often startling people as the trees themselves seemed to dance along with the music.

"Your magic is strong!" a small voice spoke gravely from nearby, and Helga looked around to find the voice.

A small child was standing near her, his brilliant green tunic making his vibrant green eyes stand out even more against his black shock of hair.

"Oh, you can tell?" Helga crouched down, making sure to keep her dress off of the ground.

"Mmhmm," the boy nodded, and he patted her hand, "I can always tell, are you the lady this party is for?"

Helga let out a small laugh, "Yes, I just got married you see."

The little boys eyes widened, "Oh! Wow, I mean," He coughed, and Helga held back a giggle as she watched him gather his thoughts, "Cong-congratulations." He nodded seriously.

Helga smiled, "Thank you, by the way, my name is Helga Blevins, what is your's?"

The boy smiled widely, "Salazar Slytherin! Mum calls me Sal, though..." suddenly his eyes widened, and he whirled around, "Ooops..."

He twisted about, and Helga saw the beginnings of panic filling his eyes, "You're one of the Slytherins from Ireland, yes? I think I saw a relative of yours near the pond, would you like me to help you find them?"

The little boy looked up with pleading eyes, and nodded quickly.

Helga smiled, and stood up, her hand outstretched. Salazar quickly took it, and the two of them walked to the pond.

Right as they reached it, a young woman, only a bit younger then Helga, appeared, and grabbed Salazar in a hug.

"Oh, Sally! We were so worried! You just vanished!"

"Don't call me Sally!" The little boy squirmed, but the girl just laughed and swung him around.

"Thank you so much, Lady Blevins, he gets into so much trouble!" The girl laughed, and hoisted Salazar over her shoulder, much to his annoyance.

Helga laughed, and was able to hold back the small amount of pain the domestic scene was causing her, "It was no problem, he was quite the little gentleman, it was lovely to meet you, she held out her hand, and Salazar reached out and shook it vigorously.

"You magic is still amazing! But why isn't your thing here?"

Helga looked at the boy in confusion, "What thing?"

The boy fidgeted again from his perch, "Your...animal thing, you must have one if you are so powerful, so why isn't it here?"

Helga laughed brightly, not noticing as the fireflies that were flitting over the grounds grew even brighter, "Oh, he is much too big to be here, and he would rather relax in his lake then be at a party."

Salazar nodded gravely, and his sister excused them with a polite nod.

Hands slipped around Helga's middle and she felt a chin rest on her head, "That was the Slytherin family heir, just so you know, they are calling him a prodigy."

Helga leaned back into Brayden's grip, "Really? He is surprising young, I thought the Slytherins were one of the oldest families."

"They are, they had three older daughters before him, and were beginning to despair from what I heard."

"He is sweet," Helga smiled, and then whirled around and grabbed Brayden's hand, "Come on, we can't stay out here too long, people will talk!"

Brayden followed Helga with a laugh, before sweeping her up, causing her to let out a startled yelp.

~~...~~

"Mum! Mummy!" A voice called out, and Helga set down her book, and moved into the nearby living room carefully.

Deri stood in the middle of a gigantic mess, a large mischievous smile lighting over his face.

"Oh dear..." Helga smiled down at the three year old, and soon copied his smile, "How have you managed to make such a mess."

"Magic," the three year old deadpanned, starling a laugh out of Helga, "But look mummy, I drew badger!"

Helga gently placed a hand on her rounded stomach, and knelt down to look at her son's drawing, "Well it certainly looks like him, but I never knew he could grow wings."

The four year old nodded with hidden wisdom, "But he should."

A hand appeared at the edge of Helga's vision, and she gently grasped it as Brayden pulled her back to her feet.

They had been married for five years, and Helga was heavily pregnant with their second child.

Brayden had taken to working at home, instead of going out to catalogue newly found magical creatures, and Helga was honestly thankful for all of the support.

"I believe Badger likes water more than the air though, Deri," Brayden spoke with a large smile.

"But he could fly! I bet! If he wanted to!" Deri grumbled, and latched onto his father's leg.

"Well...maybe..." Brayden trailed off with a shrug, and Helga sighed with a smile.

"I don't think he would want to, and if people saw Badger flying around it might terrify them," Helga added, and Brayden blanched a little at the thought.

"I agree with that completely."

Later that night, after Deri had finally fallen asleep, Brayden and Helga were reading quietly in their room.

Brayden let out a sigh, and placed his book down on the small table, "I heard some things today, dear..."

"Has the plague spread?" Helga looked up with alarm, and Brayden sighed heavily.

"Yes, that is part of it...it seems to be spreading quickly, and Mr. Morrin from two towns away was found dead just this morning."

Helga flinched, and nodded, " I can get some more of the pain relievers out by tomorrow, I believe. I am quite glad that Einion decided to go on that adventure of his, I would hate for him to be around for this plague."

Brayden shook his head with a smile, "Don't work yourself too hard, dear we don't want you getting hurt."

Helga shrugged, already thinking of what else she would need to stock up on.

"There was something else as well...I heard that, well, you remember little Salazar right?"

"Slytherin? Of course...you are not saying the plague?" She gasped into her hands, and Brayden flinched.

"No, but...I'm not sure what happened, but their house was found burned to the ground...and no survivors have been found."

Helga's book dropped, "You..you can't be serious? Don't they have wards up?'

Brayden nodded, "Yes, and from what we can tell, it was muggles that burned the place down, and that doesn't make any sense either..."

"What color was the fire," Helga's voice broke, and Brayden looked up with alarm, "I hadn't even thought to ask... you aren't thinking that it could be the same man?"

Helga's hands were shaking, but she soon found them grasped in a gentle grip.

She calmed down, and leaned forward carefully, resting her head on Brayden's shoulder.

"If it was that man, he will be punished for what he has done."

~~...~~

Helga spent the next few weeks hard at work, mixing potions and creating poultices. The plague had hit their town, and hit it hard. Deri was no longer allowed out of the house, as everyone was afraid of catching it.

Helga wiped some sweat off of her brow, boiling in the small chamber she used for her potions. The world was beginning to get fuzzy on the edges, so she stepped out of the room, and laid down on the couch.

She coughed quietly, but soon oblivion overtook her, and she knew no more.

It was dark, and hot, and hands were grabbing at her, and pushing her around. People were screaming, and yelling and crying, and she couldn't do anything. She couldn't even move

She tried to grab onto her magic, but it kept slipping out of her fingertips. She tried to ground herself, but could only feel the air rushing around her, pushing her to and fro without a thought of which direction she wanted to go.

Why fight it? She sank further under the dark water, falling into the pitch, not even struggling against the fluid that filled her lungs.

She opened her eyes slowly in the murky depths, watching as the shadows danced on the surface.

A jolt rushed through her body, and she pitched forward.

A long sleek body was floating beside her, its tail fin swishing back and forth, and it's head nuzzling into her shoulder.

'Badger...' she couldn't even find her voice, but he must have heard her.

He swam beneath her, and she felt herself being pushed towards the surface, suddenly breaking free with a wild gasp.

~~...~~

Helga woke to blurry edges, and soft noises. She blinked her eyes once, then again, the blurriness fading.

Her throat screamed abuse at her, and her head was pounding. She took a breath, and soon coughs were all that escaped from her lips.

A cup of water was gently lifted up, and she drank from it relaxing back as the cool water helped her scratchy throat.

Her eyes followed the hand back, and she was surprised to see her father in law looking at her.

"Sir?" she whispered quietly, but he just shook his head.

"Hush child, the fever has just broken...don't move," he leaned back and ran a hand over his face.

Helga blinked at him, and allowed herself to relax back into the covers, something didn't feel right.

Her brows scrunched, and she shifted again, shoulders fidgeting, and toes feeling oddly numb.

"Don't," a hand rested on her shoulder, "Please don't move...you barely survived as is, please."

"What do you mean?" she asked quietly, and then stopped in utter fear at the tears that appeared on the older man's face.

"What is going on?"

He laughed out a sob, and wiped his eyes,"I'm sorry, Helga, I had hoped to hid it from you until you were better but..."

He took a breath and stared at the ceiling, "You caught the plague, Helga, it seems you had it for a time before it was found, we found you unconscious in the lounge...the next day, Brayden came down with the sickness as well. We kept Deri away from both of you, he is fine," the man added quickly,"but you two...were hit hard...it was one of the worst cases that the healers had seen and..."

He took a breath, "Brayden is...he couldn't keep up his strength...he never regained conscious...it was a week after you both took ill and he..."

"No," Helga stared at the man next to her, willing this to be some ploy, some joke, "no, no, he was healthy, he was fine he couldn't..." She stopped, and her eyes suddenly filled with even more fear.

She heaved forward, and tears started prickling in her eyes, "...where is my baby?"

The man shook his head, and whispered, "I'm sorry Helga...he couldn't be saved..."

Helga was frozen in shock, unable to move the mantra of the word no running through her head.

"Deri is still here though, you can't see him yet...the plague is winding down in this area, but we want to make sure he doesn't catch it,do you understand Helga?" a voice was speaking through the haze that was surrounding her.

She nodded, once, as it felt it was the right thing to do, and hands gently pushed her back into the pillows.

"Rest, please, I...I can't lose you too, so please rest Helga."

Helga closed her eyes, and allowed herself to fall into dreams that would hopefully replace the nightmare called reality.

~~.~~

Helga didn't remember a lot in the years after that...it had all blurred together into some large ball of pain.

She had slept for a time, after hearing the news, and a few weeks later, was allowed to see Deri again.

He had immediately curled up in her arms, and clung onto her tightly. She held him as well, and they both wept for the life they had once had.

Helga tried her best to be there for her child, but some days she would just stop, her mind, her thoughts...she couldn't even move.

She would be sitting next to the fire and make a comment, waiting for Brayden to respond, and then her mind would catch up to the silence that surrounded her.

Sir Blevins spent less and less time at his manor, going further and further in his adventures, and one day, he stopped coming back all together.

Helga was numb.

She couldn't even feel her magic, not that she even tried. She was empty of the constant wave, the constant push and pull of the earth.

She was nothing.

She learned months later, that she would never be able to bear children again, that the sickness and miscarriage had left her barren. She didn't feel anything at the words, and thanked the healer for her help.

Helga wandered around the house like a ghost, sometimes she could swear she heard the voices of children happily playing in the halls, or the sounds of people sitting by the fire in relaxation.

The manor was feeling less and less like a home, and more and more like a mausoleum.

Deri, her sweet child of six, was the only reason she was able to get out of bed in the morning. He was her sole light in that small world.

And in the end, he was the one that saved them both.

"Mom?" he asked, tugging on her hand to get her attention.

"Yes dear?" she knelt down on the ground, and he rested his head on her shoulder.

"This place is too big," the boy spoke muffled into her gown, "I don't wanna be here."

Helga ran a hand through his hair, agreeing with him entirely, "It is big..." Suddenly her hand froze.

"Mum?" the boy peeked up through his lashes, looking so much like Brayden that Helga hugged him even closer.

"I...I may know a place we can go."

~~...~~

Helga looked over the papers that were piled in front of her.

If she signed them, she would officially be taken as the head of the Hufflepuff house, leaving the name Blevins to her one and sole heir.

She closed her eyes, but gripped the pen tighter, signing her name at the bottom.

 _Helga Hufflepuff_

~~...~~

Moving back into her old house had been easier than she had thought, the old pain dimmed by the passage of time.

She had kept all of the house elves that had helped them in the Blevins manor on, and had even moved some of them over to the Hufflepuff household, mainly the ones that Deri was used to having around.

Mimsy, Gimble, and Tulgey all made the transition that much easier, helping her get back into the rhythm of taking care of a small house.

She had smiled again, for the first time in a long time, watching Deri play in the small fountain that still stood in the corner.

She spent the rest of the night staring at the fountain, a foreign feeling growing in her chest.

The next few weeks, the feeling continued to grow, and Helga began to reach more and more out of her shell.

She returned to gardening, and began to teach Deri all that she knew. He was a natural, amazed at the plants, and the things that had been made.

There was one room, though, that Helga had not been able to enter. Her father's workshop in the back of the house stood untouched.

One day Helga woke up, and felt a drive in her blood that she hadn't felt in a long time. It was thrumming through her veins, pounding in her heart.

It was as if the world was reaching out to her, drawing her back in, drawing her close. Comforting her in its hold.

And she ran.

Clad in her night shift, she ran through the woods like a child, not caring about the dirt or the mud, not caring about branches whipping by and tearing her dress.

She ran through the woods, and felt the power swirling in her wake, violent twirls being awoken by her footsteps.

She ran all the way to the shores of a very familiar lake.

And let go.

Magic burst from her, from around her, filling every inch of sky and land with power. Clouds rumbled overhead, and lighting danced high in the air, a response to the leaking dam of the ground.

A roar filled the air, and Helga was startled to find that it wasn't that of thunder, but of something much closer.

Badger stood by her side, roaring into the sky, his own power joining with hers in a wild dance of rebellion against all that had stood against her.

Helga Hufflepuff laughed wildly against the growing tremors that shook through the forest.

She had forgotten that she was always meant to be free.

She walked home, using charms to hide her appearance from passers by, and when she entered her house, she immediately blasted open the workshop door.

Parchment flew around excitedly in her wake, and Helga grinned, she had a lot of work to do.

~~...~~

Deri giggled, as he rode on top of Badger's back, "Muuuum, what are you looking for? We've been walking through the woods forever!"

Helga gave him a look, "Really, because it doesn't seem to me like you have done much walking at all, and been having Badger carry you around this entire time."

Deri fidgeted, and let out a groan, "Fiiiiiiine, but what are you looking for?"

"I'll know it when I see it," Helga replied, and they walked further into the woods.

After half an hour of more walking, Helga stopped under a large oak tree.

She looked up into the branches, and allowed her magic to wash over the tree.

A crack was heard from above, and a large branch landed, straight into the ground, directly in front of Helga.

"Whoa," Deri whispered, and Helga smiled.

She gathered her magic in her hands, and then grabbed the branch.

Her magic rolled up and down the freely given branch, twisting through the still living veins. The branch twisted and jumped in her grasp, the bark melding together to form a smooth surface. Crystals grew up the side of the staff, twirling along the veins and whorls of the wood, until they joined at the top, creating an orb of light.

Helga picked up her staff, and whirled it around in her hands.

Her magic hummed around her, and she finally felt herself be filled with joy.

She could do it, she could live.

She would live.

~~...~~

Helga whirled her new quill in her hands, smirking as the ink stayed in the nib, and continued to scribble with it. She smiled as she wrote and wrote and wrote, and didn't have to dip the quill once.

She tucked the quill into a large pocket of the desk, and grabbed one of the books she had been working on.

After beating her depression into submission, Helga began to follow more and more in her father's work, trying to create new spells and tools that could be used. She had started writing a book about household charms, and then moved on to herbs and spells that could be used with them.

She then jumped from that book, and started combining those spells in some new one she had been testing out in the kitchen, and she and Deri were having a wonderful time trying to see what they could do to the food before the house elves tried to usher them out.

Which had led her to trying to come up with a quill that she would not have to constantly re ink. She had tried multiple ways, and in the end found that inscribing a spell on the nib to drain directly from a large pot of ink had worked the best.

She began pacing back and forth in the room, wondering if she always had to pair to the pot, or if there was a way she could maybe let the quill just use whatever ink was around, that might have interesting results...

She trailed off, and grabbed the aforementioned quill and began to write again, watching as the moon rose on the horizon.

The magic in the earth suddenly jolted through her, causing her to stumble to her feet and run outside. She planted her bare feet in the ground, and focused on the magic around her.

 _"No, please, help!"_

Helga froze as she heard a pleading voice whisper into her ears, and tried to focus even harder on the strange feeling of fear.

 _"Someone, anyone, I can't do this anymore, please..."_

Helga felt a pull on her magic, and she immediately responded to the pleading voice, and pulled back.

A flash of light occurred, and Helga watched in awe as a young girl apparated before her, falling to the ground in a heap.

Helga rushed forward, hands outstretched to help the child, but froze as the girl threw herself backwards.

The girl was covered in bruises and scars, her feet were bare, and she was bleeding through her thin shift.

Her face was set on a scowl, and her arms were raised to cover her torso, littered with scratches and burn marks.

Her mouth was drawn back in a snarl, but her eyes were the most fearsome of all, a deep blue that reflected the rage, pain, and fear that she was feeling.

"Hello," Helga didn't move from where she was crouched, but the girl struggled to move back away from her, "My name is Helga Hufflepuff, what is yours?"

The girl's eyes widened in disbelief and she continued to stare at Helga.

"This is my house," Helga sat down on the ground, treating the frightened girl much as she would a wild animal, "in Wales. My magic felt you calling out for help, so it brought you here, did you feel it?"

The girl slowly nodded, and her shoulders lowered a miniscule amount.

"You are hurt," Helga kept her voice calm, and movements gentle as she slowly stood, "I have potions that can help, if you want. But you would have to come inside."

To be honest, Helga wasn't going to leave her out in the yard as she was, but she figured she should try to gentle her inside before spelling her unconscious.

The girl remained huddled on the ground, but her eyes had become less and less rage filled, and Helga watched as they were filled with exhaustion.

"Please let me heal you, you can leave whenever you want, but I can't in good conscience leave you here like this," Helga held out her hand, and slowly the girl reached out and took it, flinching as she stood on her bleeding feet.

Helga gently led her into the house, and sat her down carefully on one of the chairs in the living room, near to the door so the girl could leave if she wanted.

She rushed to the potions lab, and after looking for a while, grabbed all of the potions, poultices, and bandages she had, and piled them into a basket.

She slowed herself before she entered the living room, and knocked on the door. The girl must have heard her coming, because she didn't startle at the sound.

Helga held out a potion to the girl, "This is a pain reliever, I would suggest you take it, but I understand if you don't want to."

The girl shook her head, and Helga nodded.

"Let's start with your feet," Helga carefully moved forward, and summoned a bucket of warm water and some rags.

The girl's feet were bleeding freely, branches and brambles caught in a number of scratches. With the utmost care, Helga began to pick out the dirt and debris, and started carefully cleaning the blood off of them. She grabbed some of the bandages, and carefully wound them around the girl's feet, up to her ankles, and spelled them to stay in place.

The girl moved forward suddenly, and a small questioning noise came from her throat.

"Hmm?" Helga looked up, and saw that the teenager was staring at her hands, "Oh, a wand? I don't need one. I have a staff I use for large spells, but this kind of stuff can be done easily."

The girl nodded, and Helga was awed to see her hold out her hand, and small flame burst into life.

"Amazing, fire is one of the hardest elements to control!" Helga beamed at the girl, who suddenly flushed and hid her expression.

Slowly, the girl snuffed the flame, and carefully grabbed the pain reliever, and drank it.

Helga gave her a small smile.

"Can you show me where else you are injured that you would let me treat?" Helga asked, and then began the slow process of healing burns and cuts and lash marks all over the girl's body.

She was dreadfully thin, and Helga expertly held back the anger that was beginning to fill her at whoever had done this to the poor child.

"You have quite a few broken bones that healed incorrectly...if you would let me, I can fix them...but they would have to be rebroken and set, it would mean you would have to stay here for a time. I have a spare room that you can use?"

The girl leaned back against the chair,her matted hair crackling,and Helga placed a hand on hers, "I can help you get cleaned up, too, and some clothing that you can use. Please, I can't bare the thought of leaving you like this. I live here with my son and some house elves, it is quiet, and you wouldn't have to worry about being disturbed."

The girl stared her straight in the eyes, and Helga returned her gaze respectfully. Whatever the girl had seen there caused her to nod, and Helga carefully helped her hobble to the guest bedroom.

Helga had her sit on a chair, and she began to run water through the girl's hair, cleaning it, and casting charms all the while to get rid of snarls, tangles, and lice. She dried it with a wave of her hand, and smiled as the ebony locks that had looked like a squirrels nest spilled down to the middle of her back.

The girl was nodding off where she was sat, so Helga carefully levitated her to the bed, and used a spell to switch her clothes. The went about the task of re breaking the girls bones, and setting them, and then moved to sit by the bed with a book, making sure to stay a distance away in case the girl woke in a panic.

Helga had told the house elves to let her son know of the guest, and she could hear them moving around the house the next morning, but staying away from the guest room.

Helga listened as Deri giggled about something or another, but stopped when she felt a prickling up her spine.

Her guest was awake and staring at her, fear marring with hope on her face as she looked around the room.

"Good morning," Helga smiled, "How are you feeling?"

The girl continued to stare for a time, before a small sound, less than a whisper, broke the silence, "Better...thank you."

Helga beamed, "I'm glad, the potion from last night should have worn off by now, do you need another one?"

The girl shrugged, and Helga carefully placed it by the bedside, "I will leave it here then, are you hungry?"

The girl's stomach answered that question, and she hunched her shoulders.

"I can get you some light food if you want, I don't think a large meal would sit well right now. You should be able to walk if you are careful, the privy is just out this door and to the left, if you need to use it."

Helga carefully stood and the girl nodded.

"don't have one," the girl mumbled, and Helga looked at her in confusion, "Hmm?"

"A name, " the girl played with the end of the quilt she was tucked under, "I don't have one, _she_ always called me girl."

Helga froze momentarily, and she hid her fists as they clenched, "Well, then you could come up with one couldn't you, a name for yourself?"

The girl looked at her with wide eyes, and Helga smiled, and left to go get started on a light soup.

~~...~~

Helga smiled as she watched Deri teach her guest how some of the herbs were grown, her guests eyes riveted with interest.

That was one of the first things Helga had learned about her, that she wanted to know everything.

She watched as spells were cast, and read every book she could get her hands on. Helga was surprised at the amount of knowledge she had, mainly from their stilted conversations about the books she was reading.

From what Helga could tell, she had studied a lot of the theory, but hadn't been able to practice any of it, so Helga began to teach her and Deri spells, and how to use their magic.

She had looked so small when they first met, that Helga had believed her to be a young teen, no older than fifteen, when in fact she was already seventeen years old.

Helga didn't ask her about her past, and she seemed happy for it. In fact, she had smiled for the first time a few days ago, while practicing her spells. She had called fire to her hand, and had it dance around the room, lighting up in different colors and sparking cheerfully in the air.

She had given a small smile, and Deri had whooped with excitement, chasing it around the room.

"Hey mum?" Helga looked down as Deri pulled on her gown, "Can we go see Badger?"

Helga's eyes lighted up, and she turned to her guest, "Badger is my familiar, he lives in the woods, would you like to come meet him?"

Her guest nodded slowly, "Yes, if I can..."

"Of course, I will go grab some food, you two can get ready, it is a bit of a walk, are your feet well enough?"

Her guest nodded, and Helga was shocked to be gifted with another smile.

They reached the lake by the afternoon, and Helga watched with joy at the light that entered her guests eyes as she first spotted the lake.

"This is...beautiful..." she took a step forward, and knelt down to run her hand through the water.

Helga smiled, and strode into the water, Badger immediately swimming up to greet her.

Soon, he waddled over to the girl, and she stood still as he gave her a small sniff, and carefully licked her face.

She giggled, and Helga's heart almost stopped at the pure joy she could feel.

The four of them enjoyed their day at the the shore, and Helga smiled as she saw that her guest was practically skipping on the way back.

That night, she and the girl were reading quietly in the sitting room, when she spoke.

"Those birds we always see around here, the large black ones, what kind are they?"

Helga looked up from her book on levitation charms, which she had been trying to use to try to find a way to easily transport one object without disturbing the content inside, and saw that her guests face was still stuck in an old book about ogham spells.

"Ravens, if they are large, crows if they are smaller. Ravens are intelligent and cunning, as you can tell when they try to steal my hat!" Helga smiled, and the girl across from her muffled another smile.

The room was filled with quiet again, and Helga started to hum and she flipped to another spell in her book.

"Rowena Ravenclaw," the girl spoke, and she glanced up at Helga.

"Hmm?"

"You...you said I should make my own name. That is what I want...Rowena Ravenclaw."

Helga smiled, and placed her book down, walking over to sit next to her...Rowena. She carefully wrapped her hands around the waif of a girl, and smiled as she felt her being clutched closer.

"It is lovely to meet you, Rowena."

The girl let out a small sound, before beginning to sob into Helga's shoulder. Helga held her close for the rest of the night, petting her hair, and listening to her story.

~~...~~

Rowena had left, a month after that, to go on an adventure. She asked if she could come back afterwards, and Helga told her that she could always had a place there.

Helga soon found the quiet of the house unsettling, and began to start teaching children in the neighborhood how to do magic when she found the time.

She greatly enjoyed teaching them spells, and how to control their magic, and helping them find what they were good at.

Deri enjoyed the lessons as well, and was the first one to bring up the topic.

"It is like a school, mum! You should make a school! Where you can teach everyone!"

Helga had started to think on that idea more and more, and soon found herself searching around the properties that the Blevins' had owned.

If she was to make a school, though, she would need a lot of help. She would need to find teachers, and a way to get students there, and a way to keep it safe from muggles, and people who might hurt those in the school.

The list began to grow and grow, and Helga began reaching out to see if she could find anything useful.

It was a bleary day, when a sharp knock was heard on her front door, and Helga opened it quickly to find a beaming Rowena standing there, her hair held back in a loose braid, and a phoenix sitting on her shoulder.

Helga welcomed her back warmly, and Rowena introduced ælif, her familiar that she had met on her travels.

The two went inside and sat down, Rowena seeming much more excited then Helga had ever seen before.

She was still quite composed, though.

"I want to help, and I think I know two other people who can help!" She grinned, and ælif trilled.

"Excuse me?" Helga looked at her in puzzlement, and Rowena had a small smile playing on her lips.

"I...I saw what you are planning, and I saw you, and me, and two others, and it was beautiful, and I want to help, I want to teach. I know where you can find those two, as well," Rowena spoke quickly, but was careful in her speech.

"You...you saw? You are a Seer?" Helga looked at her in bafflement.

Rowena's small smile widened, and she ducked her head, "Yes...when I was young I didn't realize what was happening, but sometimes I can get glimpses of the future, just enough to see what could happen. It is how I lived to see this day..."

Helga nodded, and smiled, "Well then, I am glad for it...but can you tell me more about what you saw?"

~~...~~

Helga smiled as she walked into the small inn, and moved to the area where a few people were relaxing.

"I'm telling you, you really shouldn't go charging in like that, it makes you seem to be an idiot. Now, I already know that, but you might try to fool your enemy for at least a few seconds," a young voice drawled, and the man who was sitting next to him started to laugh.

"Call me a fool, but I think giving them fair warning that they have no hope of winning is better for it," He grinned a the aggrieved sigh his companion made.

The man had a sword with rubies embedded into the hilt, and a large shield with a lion rampant embossed on the front. He had bushy red hair that framed his head, but was held back with a band.

His companion was much younger than he was, lithe where the other was muscular. His long black hair was held back in a tail, and he was wearing a deep green tunic, not armor as his friend was.

He had gloves on his hands that glinted and gleamed in the light, and seemed to have a permanent smirk on his face.

His eyes were bright green, and they zeroed in on Helga instantly.

She walked over to the table the two were at, and then smiled as the older of the two invited her to sit.

"Hello, my name is Helga Hufflepuff, and I heard from a friend you might be interested in something I am working on."

* * *

This story has been built up in my head for quite some time, and I am glad it is finally being posted. As these chapters are much longer then my usual, it will take longer for them to be uploaded.

Godric is next, followed by Rowena, then finally Sally~  
After that, it will get into how these four start up Hogwarts and try to get along...sort of.

Please leave a review on your way out. I tried to get this right for the time and area, but if I have any huge mistakes, please let me know.

Helga's song is : "Stand in the Rain" by SUPERCHICK

~Not Necessarily in Between


	2. Courage, Part 1

This series is my interpretation of the background of the Founders. Their lives, how they came together, how Hogwarts was formed etc. That being said, a lot of the things that happen in this story are correct for the time period, which is from about 500 to 800 CE. The beginning chapters are each founder's life story, and now it is time for the Gryffindor debut.

Please read warnings for every chapter, as they will all be very different.

 **Warnings:** None for this chapter.

* * *

 ** _Chapter 2: Courage, Part 1_**

* * *

 _"Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live."_

Godric stood quietly at attention as his father stood before him, his sword laying bare in his hand. They were outside just after dawn in the large training field on the Gryffindor estate. It was a dirt field, with lines drawn in chalk. A large fence surrounded it, and targets and training dummies littered the sidelines.

Godric Gryffindor's father, Kennard Gryffindor, was a stern and tall man, towering above his young son's head. He had brown hair, almost black, and blazing green eyes. His body was mottled with scars, and his face was always caught in between stern and stoic.

Godric had gotten most of his looks from his mother, his bright red hair, and the small quirk to his lips were solely her's, but he had his father's eyes.

His father was a knight in service to the King of England, one who specialized in a particular kind of job.

Witch hunting.

Gryffindors had been witch and magic hunters for generations; that was in fact how they had earned the last name when they were finally given land and title, as well as the Griffin Rampant as their coat of arms.

Godric had turned six the day before, and it was finally time for him to begin his training to take his father's place come his death.

Sir Gryffindor spoke again, "We will start with strength training, you will need to build up your muscles. Grab a practice sword, and follow my movements. Once you have memorized them, you will do them to my count until we are done for the day."

"Yes, sir," Godric nodded respectfully, and began to follow his father's orders.

Up, down, up, down, step, back, step, back, Godric found himself falling into the pattern, and moved to his father's count for the rest of the morning.

At noon, his father stopped him, and they both went inside to freshen up before dinner.

After finishing their meal together, Kennard went off to work, and Godric went to study with his mother for the afternoon.

~~.~~

"When you are using a levitation charm, you must focus on the object, not the area surrounding it," Lillian spoke quietly, and with a wave of her wand, she raised the ancient tome that sat between them.

"You should be trying to focus on lifting the object, not on moving it. As if you were lifting it with your hand. You don't care about what is surrounding it, just that you have the strength to lift it. This is the strange part though, so pay attention, you can lift much heavier things with your magic then you can by your hand."

She then lifted the table with a wave of her wand, and Godric stared in awe.

"This has to do with the strength of your mind, not your magic as some will say. Magic is your will power. True, it will be easier for people with more power to do greater things, but what truly sets wizards apart is the strength of their belief," she smiled, and carefully placed the table back down.

"Which means it is time for meditation!" She clapped, and Godric let out a small groan.

"Mother, again?" Godric had a small frown on his face, "Can't I actually do something with magic instead?"

Lillian smiled, though it was a touch sad, "If we were anywhere else dear, yes...but here you must have control before we even start."

Godric nodded, his face scrunched up, "because of Father."

Lillian shook her head gently, and ran a hand through his hair, "Your father is a good man, he just spent his entire life learning that magic was evil."

"Yes, and now he is trying to teach me the same thing!" Godric grumbled, "What am I supposed to do?"

Lillian sighed, "Well, meditate on that then."

Godric sighed and fidgeted to get comfortable. He then closed his eyes, and breathed deeply.

~~.~~

Godric curled up in his bed, and a giddy smile touched upon his lips. Today had been so much fun. He was finally going to be able to learn to be a knight! and protect people, and all kinds of other amazing things!

He pouted a little at the magic problem, but rolled over in his bed with delight anyway, deciding to ignore it for now. He quietly rolled out of his bed, and sat at his desk, all the lights in his room were out, and he made sure that nothing was making a sound.

He closed his eyes and concentrated on his core, like his mother had taught him. His eyes scrunched as he saw it, because he could never get the next step of his meditation done correctly.

His core was there! He just...couldn't connect to it...

Godric would try to pull strands out, and weave them into his hands like his mother did with her wand, but it was like there was an invisible shield in between him and his magic.

He hadn't told his mother about it, he wasn't quite sure if he could. He had never shown signs of accidental magic like his mother had talked about. She had spoken to him about all of the mischief she had gotten into as a child, but she seemed to believe that his meditation is what was stopping his magic from causing chaos.

If only that was actually true.

~~...~~

Kennard blocked his strike with ease, and pushed him back without a thought.

"Faith," He spoke, and sidestepped a lunge, "That is the code I stand by, that my father stood by."

He swung at Godric, and Godric grunted as the sword met his.

"My grandfather chose Justice as his."

Godric took a step back, and calmed himself, rebalancing even as his father slashed up to the left.

"You will choose one as well, a trait that defines what you are trying to protect, what you stand for."

"Are.." Godric huffed out a breath, "Are there other common ones?"

Godric's father nodded his approval, "Yes, remember this list, Faith, Justice," with each word he swung, "Charity, Sagacity-"

"Sagacity?" Godric asked, and rolled under the blade, skipping back, a small smile lighting on his father's face.

"It is similar to wisdom in a sense," his father then continued, "Prudence, Temperance, Valor, Resolution, Truth, Hope, Liberality..."

He suddenly sprang forward, and with a swift moved knocked Godric's sword out of his hands.

"And Diligence," His father finished, and gently lowered his sword.

"These are the Codes we live by, the things that a knight must hold over all else. We tend to choose one that we feel the most closely with as a basis for what we fight for, but to hold true to all of them is to be a knight. Do you understand, Godric?"

"I understand the concept, father, but it might take me a bit longer to truly understand," Godric spoke quietly, and another rare smile flitted over his father's face.

"You are wise beyond your years, now grab your sword and let us start again."

~~.~~

"Guh," Godric grunted, and fell into his seat, his mother laughing at his pain.

"It takes time to get used to the workload, but at least we have a way to get rid of all of your excess energy now!" She smiled at him, and he grumbled in defeat.

"Mother...I have a question..." Godric trailed off and looked up at her with confused eyes.

"Yes dear?"

"Why did you marry Father if you knew he hated magic?"

Lillian sighed, and placed her hands together in her lap.

"When I first met your father, he in fact saved me from an evil sorcerer. I was being attacked at the time because the sorcerer was trying to kill all of the muggles in the village I was staying in, he didn't know I was a witch, so he targeted me as well. Your father came in, and saved my life, but the sorcerer was able to apparate away. He was gravely injured after the battle, and I took care of him for days on end. After that, he kept coming back to the village, and it was only after months of secretly courting that I found out what he did for a living."

She gave a wistful smile, "And at that point it was far too late for me to turn back."

She twisted her hands in her lap, "He does kill those with magic, that is true...but he is usually only called out for those that have gone to far, that are killing non magicals in plain sight."

Godric hummed, and leaned back in his chair, "But...if he found out about you, about us..."

Lillian's smile turned melancholy, "He mustn't find out...it would be the worst betrayal for him."

"I understand," Godric moved forward in his seat, and his mother nodded in return.

"Today, we will be practicing a spell-"

Godric jumped in his seat, his face shuttering closed.

"Godric?" Lillian looked over at him with concern.

"I...I can't" Godric whispered, eyes forced shut.

"Oh, honey, of course you can, it might be difficult at first but-"

'No , mother, I really can't, I can't access my core at all!" Godric half shouted, and then flinched back.

Lillian looked down at him with concerned eyes, "What do you mean?"

Godric sighed, and ran hand through his hair, "My magic is there,I can feel it, but I can't reach it! It is like there is an invisible wall between me and it!"

Lillian blinked once, and then let out a sharp gasp causing Godric to crouch back, not wanting to see the disgusted look on his mother's face.

"Godric," her voice was filled with awe, and he looked up with shock.

Her eyes were wide and bright, a large smile on her face, "Godric, can I check for you? I need to make sure?"

"What does it matter!" Godric nearly cried, "I can't do magic! I'm...I'm a failure..."

"Hush, honey," a warm and comforting hand rubbed his shoulder, "You can do magic, I know you can, let me check something, and then I will be able to tell you exactly what has happened."

Godric grumbled, but froze, and felt his mother's warm magic flow over him.

She stood still for a time, eyes closed, and her magic slowly flushed over the room.

Godric found himself captured in a tight hug, "Oh, Godric, you are a miracle!"

"W-what? Because I can't use magic?" Godric cried out in shock, and his mother laughed and drew him closer.

"Yes, well no, you can use magic, but...here, let me show you," She moved back, and immediately fired a spell at Godric.

"Rictumsempra," she smiled, and Godric bounced back, waiting for something to happen, but nothing did.

"Mother?" Godric looked up at her, and his draw dropped as she was literally hopping with joy.

"Oh, I can't believe it, my little boy! Oh, we have to start everything over, I never expected this to happen, I thought it was a myth!"

"Mother?" Godric moved forward a little, and she seemed to notice his tension and calmed down.

"Oh, my little lion, you have just inherited one of the greatest gifts any wizards could ever hope to have. That barrier around your core, is actually the outer edge of your magical skills. You can stop magic. My great great grandmother had this ability as well, if she focused and paid attention, she could stop any spell from affecting her. She made a grimoire of her experiences and spells she used, it has been passed down the family for generations in case of of her descendants was the same."

"And it's you, and this is the best thing that could have happened to you! What with training to be a knight, this will certainly keep you safe," Lillian grinned, and hugged him close again.

Godric felt the beginnings of tears stream down his cheeks, "You mean I can do magic?"

"Of course, darling, you never should have doubted it. You will be fantastic, I know it."

~~...~~

 _"A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them."_

Godric was kneeling in front of the cross in the small chapel on the side of the estate. His father was standing before him, looking at the crucifix.

"Witches and wizards are heathens unto the Lord. They are not to be allowed to live. They take the gifts of life that all of us are given, and pervert them in unnatural ways. There is no mercy for those who practice witchcraft, they must be put to death."

His father turned around and looked down at Godric, "The next few weeks, instead of practicing with different kinds of weapons, we will be studying how to identify and fight against magic."

Godric's eyes were wide, and his father misinterpreted the look, "That is right, magic is something to be feared, but it can be fought. Magic can be taken down as easily as a common bandit's sword."

He gestured towards a small pew off to the side of the room, "Let us first look at different kinds of battle magic, and how to see which spells are going to be used."

"The first thing that sets apart normal humans from witches is that they must have a focus. A staff, or stick seems to be the most common, but others can use different kinds of materials."

He stalked back and forth in front of the pew, "What you must be most wary of though, son, is those who have familiars. Those of magic who chose to keep monsters by their sides are by far the most powerful of them all. Be it from white cat to dragon, if you see someone who is constantly with an animal, be on high alert."

"And lastly," he stood still and tall, his shadow falling over Godric's wide eyes, "There are some that you cannot fight, some that you must turn back from. There is no dishonor in this act, for if you had stayed to fight you would not survive."

He turned his back, the scar that crept around the back of his neck standing out harshly in the torchlight, "They have no need for wand or staff. They hid themselves in plain sight and let their magic fester around them. If you can feel their devil's aura around you, around where they are. You run. And you do not look back."

~~.~~

Godric flexed his hand as he walked quickly behind his mother, making sure to keep his head up straight and walk with purpose. He glanced at his mother again, and she was still wearing that small smile, so they must not have been caught yet.

"Calm down, Godric," Lillian spoke with a small chuckle, "You don't need to worry, everyone here is like us."

Godric's eyes widened, and he stared down the rows of houses, noticing for the first time how the laundry was flitting about on it's own, or how the children were running through the street, with their parents casting spells on them with their wands to keep them in line.

"Wow," Godric stared, raptured, at all of the magic around him. His mother chuckled a second time, and gestured forwards.

"Why are we here, Mother?" Godric asked as they past by another group of houses.

She hummed, and a small smirk drifted across her face, "Well, I thought it would be nice for you to see that there are large groups of witches and wizards out there, but also...I think it is time we got you a wand."

Godric stopped in his tracks, frozen, jaw to the ground, "A w-wand? But I just barely learned how to cast spells through the block!"

Lillian nodded, "Yes, and I think a wand might help you control that flow of magic easier. At least we can try and get one for you now, it could always help in the future."

"But, what about Father, he would surely notice a wand during our dueling!" Godric ran to catch up with his mother again.

"There are a few quite easy charms you can lay on objects to make people not notice them, and they work well. I have left my wand out in plain view once or twice and he hasn't seen it at all."

"Mother..."

"Come on little lion, where is your courage," she sent a smile at him, and he blushed to the tips of his ears.

They continued to walk through the little neighborhoods until they got to a cobblestone street, stores dotting the sidelines.

Potions ingredients, books, scrolls, clothing, anything a magic user could dream of seemed to be on that street.

"We can take a look around after, here is the wand shop," Lillian pushed her son forward, and then took a step back.

"I'm going to pop down the street for a bit, I will come back after your wand chooses you and then we can pay, understood?"

"Yes, Mother," Godric looked up at the store with some trepidation, but then resolutely moved towards the entrance.

As he walked in, a small bell sounded from somewhere that was hidden by the piles of thin boxes piled up to the ceiling, most likely only kept up by the liberal use of magic.

"Welcome lad." A voice spoke from directly behind him, and Godric whirled automatically standing back in his proper dueling stance, his hand clenching open in the air where his sword hilt would have been.

"Now, now no need to be violent," a thin, reedy man spoke, his eyes glinting silver in the dusty light.

"Sorry,sir," Godric gave short bow, and relaxed.

"No worries, good reflexes, excellent dueling material," The man nodded,"With that hair you must...Lillian Monday's child."

Godric nodded, "Godric Gryffindor, sir."

"Ah," the man let out the sound with a breathe of soft air, "indeed. Well, Mr. Gryffindor, you are here for a wand, are you not?"

Godric nodded quickly, and a small smile flitted over the store owner's face.

"Well then, let's begin, if you could hold out your...sword arm," he said the last words with a little chuckle.

Godric outstretched his left hand, and the man flitted over with a measuring tape. Just as the tape reached Godric, it froze, and let out a loud shriek.

Godric pulled his arm back with alarm, and stared as the shop owner easily grabbed the measure back.

"Why wouldn't...ah, she was of that lineage, wasn't she," the owner muttered to himself, and then shook his head, looking back up at Godric.

"I'm sorry child, but you will find no wand for you here."

Godric opened his mouth, then shut it tight, confusion evident over all of his features.

"You carry the lineage of the Monday's I fear, that magic nullifier. You must have come here to see if a wand would help with control, yes?"

Godric nodded.

"Unfortunately, none of these items can help you. Oh Miss Terrille Monday had the same problem, I remember her coming back in here waving some kind of metal monstrosity she had made herself, which was the only thing she could actually use. It seems since she was involved with the creation her magic was able to flow through it as it should," he had a small smile on his face.

"I see, well, thank you for your time, sir," Godric bowed once more, hiding his disheartenment, "May I wait here until my mother arrives?"

"Of course, of course..." the man then trailed off and looked towards the door, an infuriating smirk spreading over his lips, "In fact, I insist."

The man then vanished into the back of the shop, and Godric sat down on a small couch off to the side.

He was going over another list of rules his father was having him memorize when the door opened, and two children entered. One was a boy, most likely the same age, and the other was a girl just older than him.

They had hair as red as his, and Godric smiled at them "Well, that is an unusual shade."

"To you as well," the girl laughed back, "Are you here for a wand?"

He grimaced, "I was, but so far none have worked for me...I'm not quite sure what it means, honestly..." he made sure not to bring up his magic, he wasn't sure if he wanted it getting out.

"Sometimes it happens, child, it is nothing to worry about, rather, you will probably find something else that is more in tune with your nature," a voice from behind the girl and made her jump, and she whirled around to see a strange looking man leaning against the shelves.

"Two customers, lovely, you must be the Hufflepuffs, yes, I can feel your magic in the earth even now,now, which one wants to go first?"

The girl gestured for the younger brother to go first, and turned back to Godric.

"So if you aren't getting a wand, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"I'm waiting for my mother, we had to sneak out, you see. Father doesn't...well... let's say if he found out I was a wizard it would be unpleasant," Godric shrugged.

"I'm sorry," she frowned, but Godric waved it off.

"It isn't too bad, honestly, Mother makes sure I can control myself, and we haven't had any problems."

"And that is the one, Eleven inch, willow, with unicorn tail, surprisingly swishy," the shop owner spoke out, making both of them turn back to him.

"Next is you, young lady."

The girl stepped forward, and the shopkeep was about to begin, when he stalled in much the same way he had with Godric.

"Oh my, well this is such a surprising day, hold a moment please," he then vanished into the back.

He came out with a small twig, and handed it to her, "Make that grow."

Godric watched in awe as the small twig began to move and shake, twigs and leaves sprouting out of it. He could feel the magic pouring around the girl, and making the room vibrate with the intensity.

The old man sighed, "Who would have thought for two in one day."

"Excuse me?" the girl squeaked out.

"You can't have a wand, young lady, none of them could possibly work for you. You magic is tied into nature itself, every one of these wands would only be able to handle a portion of your magic. Such as the young lord there, you will have to find your own balance. This is the first time in over four hundred years since this has occurred. And twice in one day," the man looked thoughtful, "your futures will change the way of the world, no doubt about that."

Godric looked at the man closely, the way he spoke, it was as if he _knew_ something was going to happen, but that was impossible, wasn't it?

The girl nodded and handed the twig back to the man, "Well, thank you all the same."

"No problem, no problem," the man vanished back into the rows of wands, and the girl whirled around. They stared at each other with matching looks of confusion.

"Weird."

"Yes."

Godric hear a light tap on the window, and saw his mother standing outside, "Oh, that is Mother, I have to go, it was a pleasure to meet you..."

"Helga Hufflepuff," she held out her hand primly, and he skimmed his lips over her knuckles.

"A pleasure, Miss Hufflepuff, I'm Godric Gryffindor, good day to you both," Godric nodded to her younger brother and hurried out of the shop.

"Well?" His mother spoke brightly, and he gave a small cough, "ah, well he said that they won't work with my magic..."

His mother gave a small sigh, "Oh well, I was hoping that it would work out..."

Godric quickly spoke again, "He said great-great great grandmother Monday had to make her own object to work with."

His mother hummed, and they walked down the street, "Well, your magic isn't settled enough for you to make your own wand yet...it seems we will have to make sure that you can control it without one for now."

~~...~~

Godric sighed, and stretched his arms after a long bout with one of the travelling knights who was staying there.

His father always had many visitors, travelling nobles and knights, who wanted to hear the best ways to get rid of magicals and their ilk. Godric smiled through the shared stories of beheadings and drownings, ignoring the heavy weight in his chest.

He knew if his father found out about him or his mother, they would be killed post haste.

At least it gave him new people to practice with.

"That was a fine bout, young Lord Gryffindor," the knight gave him a small bow, and Godric returned it.

"It was, that dodge you used at the end was inspired, I thank you for allowing us to have a fight Sir Roderick."

The knight grinned, "Always best to practice with a lot of people, learn new styles and techniques, though with where you will be headed, I guess people aren't the best ones to fight."

Godric blinked, "What do you mean by that?"

Roderick to off his helmet, "Well, you are a Gryffindor, young lord, you will be called to kill many creatures of menace, and those who have filled their mind with the devils talk."

"Yes, of course," Godric nodded.

Roderick and Godric walked up the stairs to the front of the manor, "It is most likely that you will be joining your father in hunts soon, to make sure that you will know how to handle yourself against those monstrosities," the knight grinned, and clapped him on the shoulder, "Well, good luck to you lad!"

Godric nodded again, and walked down the main hall to his father's study. His shook his head, and relaxed his face.

"Father," Godric knocked on the door, and a gruff word echoed around the chamber.

He entered, and froze in place. There were papers strewn on the floor, and the chair his father used was toppled to the ground. The man himself was standing tense at the window, fist clenching and unclenching.

"Father? Has something happened?" Godric moved to the center of the room, squaring his shoulders.

"Indeed. I have just gotten news that the entire Slytherin main branch family has been killed in a mysterious fire," Kennard spoke slowly.

"Slytherin family?" Godric asked, and his father nodded and turned around.

"One of the richest and oldest noble families, they have been quite helpful in research against how to kill magical beast, they wrote that book that you read about the difference between cockatrices and basilisks."

Godric nodded in remembrance.

"They were good people, had three daughters and one son, he must have been seven or eight...damned hell creatures."

Godric's eyes widened, "It was a witch?"

Kennard nodded, eyes narrowing, "Most likely. There was a fire, but from what we can tell it burned too hot and too quick for an accident. One of my men questioned the people and town, and all they would talk about is how God would punish them for their actions, they were terrified and wouldn't even go near the wreckage."

His father let out a small sigh, and then looked into Godric's eyes, "This is why we fight, Godric, to protect good and pure people from the monstrosities that stalk them. Go, you have lessons with your mother for the rest of the day...I have work to do."

Godric bowed and left the room, crossing over the wing where he had his "studies." As he got closer to the room, he heard the sound of muted sobbing coming from inside. He quickened his pace, and threw the door open, striding forward quickly to kneel beside his mother.

"Mother?" Godric placed a hand on her shoulder, startling her.

"Oh, Godric, forgive me," she wiped hastily at her eyes.

"Mother, what happened?" Godric helped her into a chair, and the dainty women dabbed at her cheeks with her handkerchief.

"Oh Godric, I've just heard the most dreadful news. The entire Slytherin family was killed only last week."

"Father said the same thing, he seemed to think it was a witch or wizard, did you know them, Mother?"

His mother let out a small laugh, and shook her head, "Oh, Godric, the Slytherin family is the oldest, noblest, _magical,_ family in Ireland. There reputation allowed them to help wizards and witches in trouble, and introduce bills and laws to fight against the witch burnings. They even gave your father some books on hunting creatures that are dangerous for all people, so he would have less time to hunt witches and wizards."

Godric blinked, once, twice, and then a third time, his brain having to catch up with the information.

"They...did they help you? With hiding?"

His mother nodded tightly, "Yes, they also helped in telling me how I could raise you and keep your magic a secret, many of those meditation techniques came from their family..."

Godric moved to sit on one of the chairs, before speaking quietly, "Do you think it was someone with magic that killed them?"

His mother shook her head, biting her lip enough to draw blood, "No...the fire was strange, as they had wards on their properties, but I just got an owled letter that some nearby wizards used veritaserum on them. It seems the nearby muggles thought they were strange, and burned down the house."

"But I thought you said they hid it well!"

"They did...but we know that the muggles burned it down...they may have had help however, and because of that most of the witches and wizards in Ireland have gone into hiding."

She sighed, and dabbed at her eyes, then cast a small spell to hide the fact she had been crying.

"Let's...let's move on now, Godric, you seem to be doing quite well with transfiguration now that you can control your magic blocker. We should move on to larger and longer transfigurations. Let's start with the desk."

"Does..does this happen a lot? I mean, Father usually kills creatures, but he has told me stories about killing magic users...how...how many has he killed?"

His mother flinched,"Godric...this world is dangerous for anyone-"

"No!" Godric shouted, his face taking grim lines, "That is just an excuse, you know father kills people, innocent people, and you know if he found out about us, about you-"

" _Godric,"_ Lillian raised her voice, but he just glared and continued to speak.

"This, this is so wrong! Do you realize how horrible it is to see these knights like Sir Roderick and Sir Owen who go on and on about killing creatures and monsters. They think it is a game, a sport. They have books written up on how to kill people, like it is some kind of step by step process to kill someone with magic! How can you stand it?"

Godric was breathing harshly after his outburst, glaring furiously.

His mother's face was white, and she was blinking her eyes rapidly.

Godric ducked his head, a small sense of shame filling him for shouting at his mother.

But he wasn't going to take back what he said.

Godric swiftly turned on his heels and left the room, closing the door quietly behind him.

~~.~~

Godric sat in his room, staring blankly out of the window as night began to fall.

With a small wave of his hand, he changed the small desk in front of him into as many different objects as he could think of.

It was apparently a speciality of his family, his magical family. Changing one thing into another, changing its properties. It was why his gift was so useful. He could stop and separate the magic, have it make the changes he wanted, and even change spells midcast.

He leaned back, and let out a small sigh.

A light knock on the door, timid and sharp, had him roll to his feet.

"Come in," Godric called, and hunched his shoulders as he saw his mother enter his room.

"Mother...I"

Lillian gave him a small smile, and then coughed lightly. She moved across the room, and sat on his bed patting the spot next to her.

Godric moved and sat down, shoulders unnaturally tensed.

"Godric..." she began, but stopped to take a breath, "I have taken it upon myself to get you a new tutor."

Godric started, looking up at her sharply, "Mother, what? No, why would you think that...I love having you teach me!"

She smiled and placed a hand gently on his shoulder, "Thank you, Godric, but quite sincerely there is not much left for me to teach you. You have nearly perfect control, and can even use your special ability amazingly well. But, you were right, earlier. This is a dangerous world, and I believe I have been trying to...deny it for some time."

"Mother..."

"The tutor I'm calling in is Cole Wolfe. To the nonmagicals, he is a well known professor, and tutor. For us, he is one of the most prominent duelist of this age."

Godric stared, "Duelist, you mean with magic?"

Lillian nodded, "Indeed, I told him about your situation, and he has already agreed to come down and teach you. I talked with your father as well, and he agrees, though he thinks it is for the educational background of course."

Godric nodded, and let out a sigh, "I'm sorry for yelling mother, I just wish..."

"I know, Godric. I think we all do," Lillian gathered he son into her arms, and Godric breathed deeply, allowing his mind to quiet.

~~...~~

"Dodge, DODGE YOU IDIOT!" A large, man yelled, slashing more spells. The man was tall, taller even the Godric's father. He was bald, but had a large mustache and beard. His face was a bright red color, and scars went all the way up one side, apparently caused by a rambunctious group of draugr he had run across in his youth.

Personally, Godric thought he had gotten into a fight with a cat.

"WHY DO I NEED TO DODGE IF I CAN BLOCK IT!" Godric shouted back at Sir Wolfe, but he did duck under the next barrage.

"YOU DON'T WANT ANYONE TO KNOW OR YOUR ABILITIES, THAT WAY YOU CAN SURPRISE THEM. DON'T SHOW OFF, BRAT, YOU WANT TO SURVIVE!" Wolfe cast another barrage of spells, and Godric skillfully maneuvered around all of them. With a harsh cry he blasted spells back, his hands moving furiously as he and Wolfe continued their duel.

Then, with a massive lunge, Godric moved forward, his hand trailing below him as he transfigured the floor below him, changing its properties just enough to allow him move even faster.

"YEAAAAAAAA," he shouted, and with a snap of his other hand, blasted out a powerful spell, made to cause a massive explosion.

Wolfe moved, but not enough, and ended up getting caught halfway in the blast, causing his whole right side to turn bright purple.

"HOLD!" Wolfe called, and though he had a scowl on his face, Godric could see his mustache twitching with an amused smile.

"Oh, gods finally," Godric collapsed forward onto the ground, ignoring the muffled swearing coming from his teacher.

"Get up, let's see the damage," Wolfe walked over to the mirror, and grinned, "Very well done Godric, come on, boy!"

Godric moaned, and stood up. He wobbled over to the mirror, and looked over himself.

He had some splashes of color on his torso, and a couple on his right leg. Based on the color and the position though, they wouldn't have been fatal, just a bit annoying.

Wolfe huffed, "You still lead with your right leg, how many times have I told you that a wizard's duel is not the same as waving a hunk of metal around."

"Yes, yes, yes..." Godric grouched, and smiled as Wolfe smacked him over the back of the head.

"...that last transfiguration you used was well done, as well as whatever you did with the air after I threw the volley of cutting curses," Wolfe grumbled.

Godric beamed.

Wolfe growled at him, making Godric think of the creature he was named after.

"That's it for today, brat, go on, I know you are going to do something to celebrate your birthday, Gods know how excited your father is that you are finally coming of age, sixteen and still a brat!" Wolfe grumbled, and Godric beamed. Godric waved a hand over himself, and banished all of the the unusual colors.

"Thank you sir!" Godric bowed, and turned.

Then he toppled over as something large and heavy catapulted into the back of his head.

"Oww, what was that for?" Godric rolled over, catching the bag as it slipped off his head.

"Your birthday present, not every day you turn sixteen is it!" Wolfe humphed, and turned when Godric carefully opened it.

Godric's eyes widened. Inside the bag saw a pile of gemstones, maybe rubies or garnets.

"Sir?"

"They are magical stones, used to store and transfer power. From what your mother told me, you will have to make your own wand, or whatever have you," the man grumbled, and then glared at him as Godric was about to open his mouth to thank him.

"Leave."

"But-"

"Don't want to hear it!"

"But, sir," Godric drawled out the last word, a wicked smile on his face, "I just wanted to thank you sooooo much, I mean, this means so much to-OW, stop, okay I'm leaving!" Godric ran out of the room before more stinging hexes could be thrown, tucking the small bag into the leather pouch on his belt.

Godric straightened his clothing, and took a deep breath, relaxing his shoulders and walking with the inner grace one of his standing should.

He walked to his room and quickly changed. He put on a deep red tunic, embroidered with gold trim along the edges. Brown trousers, also trimmed with gold were next, and a belt was put on after, leather and decorated with gold embossment of griffins across the strip. Lastly he slung a brown mantle over his shoulders, the Gryffindor crest emblazoned on the back.

He stretched, making sure the clothes fit, and tucked his feet into fine hide boots.

Then he made his way to the dining hall.

It wasn't the largest coming of age event, just some of the knights his father knew, and some of the local Lords had arrived. Godric also knew that they weren't even coming for the celebration, but to see how he would do with the after event.

When he would leave the grounds and hunt for monsters on his own.

That was what the Gryffindor's did. At the age of sixteen, the sons would leave the home, and travel around the lands to see if they were worthy of keeping the Gryffindor name. It was the ultimate test.

His father had been the middle child of the previous generation of Gryffindors, and he was the only one who had survived the trials, his other brothers had died during their journeys.

"Ah, finally graced us with your presence, haven't you, young Lord, " Sir Roderick beamed, and Godric gave him a small nod.

"Finished the last of my lessons, I am on time, but everyone else seems to have arrived early," Godric looked over the crowd of about twenty people in the room, the knight boisterously talking, and the Lords and Ladies gathered in small circles.

"Well, what can we say! It's not every day that the little youngster Gryffindor comes of age!" Roderick beamed, and then bowed.

"For you, my lord," Roderick placed a package in his hands, and his smile got worse.

"What have you done?" Godric groaned, but the knight ignored him.

"I would suggest opening that later, have a good night, my Lord," Roderick then walked over to a group of knights, and grabbed his tankard off of the table.

"Godric, you should leave that by the mantle for now."

"Mother!" Godric spun around and gathered her close into a tight hug, "How was your trip, I heard the weather was foul!"

"It was, but I needed to get some things, it wasn't that bad, honestly Godric," Lillian smiled.

Godric let go, and gave his mother a light peck on the cheek, before dropping off the gift.

The rest of the night was spent between playing the hosts, and drinking with the knights. It had reached early morning before most had gone to bed, either passed out in the hall, or stumbled to their rooms.

Godric's father gestured for him to follow, and they slowly made their way to his father's study.

"Are you prepared for tomorrow, Son?"

"Your training has more than prepared me, Father," Godric responded.

His father nodded, "That is all I can hope for, then."

Kennard then moved around the desk, and drew out a package. He handed it over to Godric, a small smile hinting on the edge of his lips.

Godric, looked up at the man who had taught him everything he had known about fighting. About surviving and chivalry, what was right and wrong. Even though what his father believed would never match what Godric believed, his hatred of magic and desire to get rid of all magical beings would forever separate them, this supposedly cold man had made sure that Godric knew what he needed to survive and thrive.

Godric hated the twinge of shame in his breast that these sudden thoughts brought. He began to open the package, his mind whirling. His father would kill him for his magic, his mother as well. But, he didn't think he would be able to kill his father.

He finally got the bindings off and let out a startled breath. Beautifully crafted hard leather gauntlets lay inside, dyed red and with stunning golden etchings.

"Father, this is..." Godric couldn't even speak.

His father smiled, and sat down at his desk, "I have one last question to you before you go," His father laid his hands on top of the table, and looked Godric straight in the eyes, " Do you remember when you first began to learn, and I told you that the code I stood by was faith. I want to know what you stand for, Godric."

Godric blinked, looking up from his gauntlets, straightening his shoulders and lifting his head. What he stood for. Well, he couldn't say magic, and it certainly wasn't faith as his father's was.

He thought back to the Slytherin family, who secretly protected and helped magicals, to his mother, who always put him first and taught him all she could, to the stories of knights killing ravenous beasts from monsters. The flitting memory of a girl with bright red hair surrounded by magic.

"Courage, Father, the courage to do what I must."

Kennard nodded, "That is a fine code, good luck, Son."

"Goodbye, Father."

* * *

Godric's chapter is now half done! It started getting so long I had to split it in two. The next part focuses on his adventures, so there is a lot of action and exploring, and later on a lovely surprise guest~ (so excited!)

So, Courage Part 2 will be next!

Godric's songs: "Meant to live" Switchfoot, "Runnin'"Adam Lambert, "Blackmore's Night Radio station", Pandora

Please leave a review on your way out! :)

~Not Necessarily in Between


	3. Courage, Part 2

This series is my interpretation of the background of the Founders. Their lives, how they came together, how Hogwarts was formed etc. That being said, a lot of the things that happen in this story are correct for the time period, which is from about 500 to 800 CE. The beginning chapters are each founder's life story, and now to finish Godric's early years.

Please read warnings for every chapter, as they will all be very different.

 **Warnings:** Suicide, evil assholes,violence. Someone is a little shit. Guess who. I love him anyway. I keep killing the people I love. Not Fair.

* * *

 ** _Chapter 3: Courage, Part 2_**

* * *

Godric woke before the dawn light the next morning. He stretched and checked over his packs one last time. He had expanded one of his side bags, so he was able to bring his entire library with him, with little effort. He carefully tugged on his clothing, not the fine clothes from the previous night, but well made and worn clothes for the upcoming battles. He breathed out a sigh, and ran a hand through his hair. Glancing around his room one last time, his eyes stopped on the package he had received the previous night from Sir Roderick. He went over to it, and prodded it once or twice before carefully opening it.

Godric stared at what was inside with wide eyes, not sure how to take his...present. Inside of the package was a floppy wide brimmed wizard's hat, with large pieces of fabric hanging down the sides.

Godric stared at the atrocity for some time, before he was able to pull his mind together and see the note that was tacked onto the hat.

 _"Maybe if you wear this no one will see you coming!" -R_

Godric groaned, and his head dropped into his hand, he muffled a curse, and for some unknown reason, stuffed the godforsaken hat into his expanded bag.

He checked over his attire one last time, and finally grabbed his sword from where it hung on the wall. He had cleaned and polished it the night before, but it was always necessary to check it at least once more. He slipped it into the sheath buckled at his side, and then grabbed his bow and quiver, slinging them over his shoulders.

He left his room, quietly closing the door behind him as he slipped downstairs. He tucked out the side door, and headed towards the stables where his horse, Hildred, was already perking up at the early morning noise.

"Hey there darling, are you ready to go?" Godric rubbed his hand on her nose, and she snorted, lipping at his glove.

With Hildred saddled and bridled, Godric mounted, and they trotted forward to stand in front of the main gate. He looked over his home with one last longing glance, and as he was about to turn away, the door swung open, and his mother carefully exited the manor.

Godric blinked, and nudged Hildred towards her.

"Mother, what are you doing up so early?" Godric spoke quietly, and his mother beamed at him.

"Do you really think I would let you go without getting you a proper present?" She quickly pushed something into his hands. It was a small charm one a piece of twine, glinting and glistening in the torches fires.

"Mother?"

"That token has been passed down the Monday line for generations, it is said to protect you from evil...just be safe, my son, and..." She trailed off, her eyes closed, "Stay safe, and try so save as many people as you can. Please."

Godric smiled down at her and quickly tucked the gold medallion into his clothes, "I will Mother, I will do everything I can."

"Good luck," She smiled one last time, and Godric turned his horse away, trotting out the open gate.

~~.~~

Godric had been travelling for a few days, moving along the main road, and stopping in villages along the way to hear if there were any rumors about monsters or magic users that he could help with. He had been welcome in the villages, and spent time learning about the townspeople and the areas around his home.

Not to say he hadn't done research before, but it was different hearing it from the people in town then reading about it in his father's guides.

"I hear, in the town over, they gettin' a lot of strange things near the woods. Lights, inhuman noises," one man in a pub smirked, and sloshed his drink a bit as he leaned over to Godric's side, "They sayin' it's a haunting some kind of will-o-wisp in the woods, watchin' them. Nobody been going out there lately, too dangerous, but I heard the- the head of the village is gonna start sendin' out patrols."

Godric looked over at the man almost slumped against his side, "hmm, what village is this?"

"Oh, Fin..Finfoss, 'bout two days," the man flopped his hand down the main road in an easterly direction.

Godric smiled, and carefully removed himself from the drunks side, "Interesting, I will head that way now," Godric placed a few coins on the table, "Have a drink on me for the information."

"Thank you kindly," the drunk grinned, and waved his hand as a barmaid passed.

It took Godric about a day and a half to ride over to Finfoss, and it was reaching evening when he did finally get to the village.

The atmosphere around the town was tense, and everyone seemed to be rushing to their houses.

"Excuse me, miss, would you kindly tell me where I could gain lodgings for the night, or perhaps talk to the head of the village?"

A young lady wearing a light yellow dress with a dirty white apron thrown over it moved back a step, before curtsying, "O-of course, Milord, there are lodgings in the Lion's Pride. It is that building with the claw marks on the sign...and Derek-the head, is busy right now with the..." the girl trailed off, looking around for a moment.

"If you mean about the supernatural situation, then that is why I am here, Godric Gryffindor, at your service," Godric smiled, and did a slight bow.

The girl's eyes widened,"Oh! I, well, I mean, please let me take you to him, Milord, things have been..." the girl looked around her shoulder at the approaching shadow of the trees, "Not...good."

The girl led Godric to a medium sized wooden log building near the center of the small town, she turned to leave, and Godric called out, "May I ask what your name is, Miss?"

The girl flushed,"Margery, Milord."

"Thank you for your assistance today, Margery," Godric smiled, ignoring the blush staining the girl's cheeks,"I understand that you believe it is dangerous out at night, if you would wait a moment for me to talk to Derek, I would be honored to make sure you return home safely."

The girl smiled brightly, " No need to worry Milord, I live just 'cross the road, but thank you, Milord."

Godric watched her cross over the way, and knocked loudly on the wooden door.

A man opened the door, looking Godric over briefly, eyes lingering on the crest and the sword belted to his side.

"Yes?"

"I'm Godric Gryffindor, I heard rumors on the road that you may be suffering from a magical problem, and I am here to lend my aid if that is the case," Godric gave a polite bow.

The man's eyes widened, and a relieved look flashed over his face, "A Gryffindor! Oh thank the Lord, I mean, yes, please, Lord Gryffindor, please, come in." The man quickly moved back from the door, and led Godric to a small sitting room.

Godric sat, thanked the man for the drink that was placed by his side, and waited as the man settled across from him.

"It all started, oh a couple months ago we think, but...it was just little things. People saying they had seen lights in the woods, or they heard...noises, chanting and the like," the man took a large sip his hands trembling against the mug, "but lately...well I mean, fires don't start in the town square by themself you know? And just a few days ago one of the pigs just vanished! The guy watching wasn't drunk, never is at that time in the morning, but he swears up and down that it was gone!"

"Interesting, tell me, did anything strange, or new happen in the past couple months, any visitors, or any deaths that were unexplainable?" Godric took a small sip from his mug.

The man shook his head, "Nothing of note, I was trying to think of the same, it was just another normal year, no one even died of the frost this time around."

Godric nodded to himself, and rose, "I believe that I will be looking into this situation, thank you for your hospitality and information."

Derek rose across from him,"No, thank you Lord Gryffindor, with you here this is load off of my mind."

Godric nodded, and made his way over to the Lion's Pride to rent a room for the night.

He carefully placed his pack on the floor near his bed, and sat down on the cot.

 _'WHAT IN THE WORLD AM I DOING!'_ Godric mentally screamed at himself, his head falling into his hands.

 _'Calm down, calm down, what do I know...make a list. Lights, "chanting", fires, a pig disappeared? I, I need to think over creatures that could possibly do all of those things..."_

Godric breathed in slowly, then breathed out. He pulled out a stack of books and journals from his pouch. He spent the next two hours pouring over creatures-looking more towards the humanoid style. He went to sleep, the book stacked neatly by the bedside.

He got up with the morning light, and after a light breakfast, moved outside to get in his early morning workout.

When he finished the last of his stretches, he gathered his equipment, and went directly to the first source of the problems.

The forest.

~~.~~

The forest was a bust.

Godric smirked to himself a little, as he walked down another deer trail, eyes and ears alert. He had found nothing for the four hours he had been out there, no signs of any dangerous beasts, or any kind of foul play.

He shook his head a bit, and was walking back to the town when he stepped right into a wall. It felt of security and protection as it brushed over him, but it made him freeze all the same. Slowly he began to look over the area, and groaned as he saw the markings on a nearby tree.

"Of course," Godric sighed, and headed back to town.

~~.~~

It hadn't taken long to find what he was looking for. Godric was waiting outside a small house that was in the middle of a row of houses. He knocked on the door, and a bit of yelling was heard from inside. After a moment, a small child pushed the door open, and squeaked with surprise.

"Excuse me young man, is there an adult I could talk to?" Godric smiled, and the child squeaked again, and rushed back into the house yelling for his mother.

A middle age woman came to the door next, and froze, her skin instantly going pale.

"I have something to talk to you about, would you mind if we went inside?"

The woman backed up slowly, her eyes straining to the children behind her. Godric gave her a small smile, "Please, inside, just to talk."

The woman shakily let him in, and hastily told her children to play outside. They obviously knew something was happening, but they followed their mother's orders.

Godric nodded to himself, and quickly waved his hand, and the room was engulfed in silence.

The woman's eyes widened even further, and she fell softly into her chair.

"I-you," the woman started, unable to speak.

"Surprising isn't it? Don't worry, I'm not here to harm you or your children...I'm guessing one of them just started using accidental magic?" Godric smiled kindly, and the woman let out a rough sob.

"He, yes, I don't understand?" the woman was shaking, and Godric carefully rose and knelt beside her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm indeed a Gryffindor, but, let us just say that not many people know about this part."

"You're a wizard!" the woman stared at him in shock.

"Yes, and I can help you a little with this problem, I was able to raise my magic in secret, and I may have some ways to help you keep your children safe," Godric made sure to look into her eyes, "The wardings that you put up in the forest are well done, but I have techniques that you can use to keep the accidental magic from being too conspicuous."

The woman started crying in earnest, but was able to get out a few phrases through the sobs, "My husband and I were so worried-A Gryffindor-we thought we were dead!"

Godric stayed where he was for the entirety, and allowed the woman to gather herself.

They spent late into the afternoon talking about meditation techniques, and Godric finally let down the silence spell on the area.

"One more thing, I'm going to make it seem like I killed whatever 'creature' was out there in the area, so please try to keep things quiet for the next month or so."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you so much," the woman was beaming at him.

Godric gave her a polite nod in response.

~~.~~

It was too easy to set up some story about a ghost of a person that had gotten lost in the forest, and that was the end of that. The head of the village was positively smitten, thanking him again and again.

"Please, it was no trouble, this is my job after all, but if anything else happens here, I would be honored to come back and help," Godric smiled beatifically and rode off.

"Well, that wasn't too bad," he mumbled under his breath, and once out of sight of the village, he leant forward, head resting on his horse's neck.

"I'm so screwed."

~~ Six months into the journey~~

 _"Somehow,"_ Godric thought to himself as he raised his sword and sliced, " _This is actually so much easier than dealing with people."_

Godric ducked again, and sliced the hat off of the Redcap that was trying to skewer him.

With a quick throw of his hand, Godric knocked two more back, and swiftly erased them as well.

"Three down, how many more to go," Godric groaned, and rolled as a large pike sliced through the air where he once stood.

It honestly hadn't taken that long to get rid of the Redcap infestation, but Godric was waiting outside in the sun letting the caps dry before he burned all of the remains.

He was sitting by the fire, one leg outstretched and another tucked carefully under his chin, when he heard a loud screech and shouts.

Godric launched to his feet, rushing forward, and soon came across a clearing with a large creature raging. Godric began to glance up at the beast, and then swore loudly and ducked to the side.

Making sure to stay out of range he carefully looked up from the ground again, pointedly staring at the scaly body that began to change into feathers around the neck.

He jolted his eyes down again and swore, quickly rolling and moving behind a tree.

A shout caught his attention, and Godric groaned as he saw a group of goblins moving around the edge of the clearing, two laying on the ground dead, and five moving in formation to keep the monster from hurting them.

"IS IT STARING OR TOUCHING?" Godric called out, watching as the lower body of the Cockatrice swiveled towards him.

"STARING! AND TOUCHING!" One of the goblins yelled back, causing Godric to swear even louder.

"By the triple goddess how does a cockatrice get this close to civilization? Why! Why! Cockatrice, come on, Slytherin's book, umm, ROOSTER!" Godric grinned, and then frowned.

"How am I supposed to get a rooster out here?"

Godric sprinted across the clearing, drawing the cockatrice away from the goblins for a moment, "DO YOU HAVE A ROOSTER?"

"WHY WOULD WE HAVE A ROOSTER!" One of the goblins shrieked incredulously.

"Well that didn't work...am I really going to have to try this?" Godric huffed as he ducked under a large scaly claw, and swiftly drew back further, drawing the cockatrice back after him.

Suddenly the cockatrice reared back, it's chest expanding as it filled it's lung sacks.

"Oh...that is bad," Godric swiftly knelt on the ground, dropping his sword to grab a large stick from nearby.

"Please work," Godric shoved his magic into the stick just as a massive bout of flame bowled into him.

The rooster crowed in surprise, but the fire had already reached Godric. He closed his eyes, ' _Well, this is one way to go I guess.'_

Time seemed to stand still, and yet, there was no heat, no heart stopping terror. Godric slowly opened his eyes, and then laughed with pure overwhelming awe.

He was completely surrounded by scorched and dead grass, even the trees behind him were smoldering. However, starting about half a foot in front of him everything was untouched, including a very scared rooster.

"Magic, it was magic fire, of course," Godric looked quickly over the corpse of the cockatrice before falling back on his butt with a thump.

"Bloody-oh gods that was close," he shook his head, and rose, limbs a tad shaky.

He blinked as he was helped to his feet. The Goblin party had moved around the beast, carefully prodding it with their spears to make sure of it's death.

"I am Iron Tooth," the one at the front of the party spoke, "We thank you for your aid. We did not expect to run into a cockatrice whilst on our journey."

"It is an honor, Iron Tooth, I am Godric Gryffindor. I was in the area killing Red caps when I heard the commotion," Godric gave a bow. ' _Remembered my schooling,_ _ **always be respectful to goblins.**_ _'_

Iron Tooth nodded, and seemed to command the rest of his group to pick up things that had been scattered around the area.

Godric blinked and walked forward to stand right next to the cockatrice, "I'm actually not sure, can these things kill by touching even after they are dead?"

Iron Tooth looked at him slowly, "Yes, even their glare is still deadly."

Godric hummed, and then with all his Gryffindor courage pat the cockatrice on the head.

Iron Tooth let out a swear, and then stilled as nothing happened.

"Huh, didn't expect it to work like this," Godric muttered, poking and prodding at the beast.

Godric slowly noticed that the clearing had gone deathly silent, and it was only broken by a large crow from the rooster.

Iron Tooth's eyes were wide, and he seemed extremely pale for a goblin.

"...yes?" Godric turned, still patting the cockatrice aimlessly.

"I believe, Mr. Gryffindor, that I have a business proposition for you," Iron Tooth looked at the man.

"I would be honored to speak of it with you, I have a camp a small ways away if you would like to join me?" Godric motioned towards the camp

They moved to the camp quickly and efficiently, two members of the party staying behind to do whatever goblins did for their deceased.

They had gathered around the fire when Iron Tooth spoke again.

"Cockatrice parts are rare, for many reasons of course, the main one being it is nearly impossible to collect pieces without someone dying," the goblin began, "your ability allows you to touch the cockatrice without its adverse side effects, and so I would ask for a trade. You gathering and collecting the cockatrice's eyes and scales, and we will recompense you for it."

Godric nodded to himself for a moment mind slowly going over the deal, when a memory flitted through his mind, "I have no need for money but..." he trailed off and looked up, "forgive me for my presumptions, but I have heard that goblins are by far the best crafters of all kinds."

Iron Tooth nodded slowly, waiting for Godric to continue.

"As you may have noticed, I do not have a want as other wizards do, it has to do with the ability to stop the cockatrice's effects. One way to negate this is to make an item and imbue my magic into it during the creation." Godric trailed off at the raised brow of the goblin.

"You are asking us in exchange for the cockatrice parts, to make you something?" The eyes narrowed.

Godric hummed, "If possible, to help me make a sword." Godric moved around and found the pouch of rubies, upending it in his hand, "with these in it as well."

The goblin's eyes grew wide as he stared at the gems, "Do you know what those are?"

Godric blinked, "They store and transfer magical energy, though I do not know the exact name."

All of the goblins stared at the gems in awe not even able to wipe the surprise from their faces, and Iron Tooth spoke quickly, "I will agree to this deal, if in addition to the cockatrice parts, we are given two of those gemstones as well."

Godric hummed, "I agree to this condition, however, the gemstones will be handed over after the forging, in case anything happens to the others during it."

"Acceptable," the goblin spoke quickly.

~~.~~

It hadn't taken long to collect the pieces of the cockatrice and store them in small enchanted bags for the goblins. After they were collected, and the bodies burned, Iron Tooth began to lead the group to the west.

"You must be careful human," one of the goblins nearest to him spoke, "We are allowing you entry into our city, and even though you are here for a trade you may still be killed."

"I will do my best to not incite a cause, as well as swear if necessary to never tell where this city is," Godric spoke solemnly.

The goblin nodded cautiously.

They reach a stone outcropping by nightfall, and Godric watches in awe as Iron Tooth scratched his finger over a boulder _**and it split in half**_.

"That is amazing," Godric stared in awe as the enter a beautifully carved stone path down into the bowels of the earth.

"Of course it is," Iron Tooth replied, leading the way.

It took them half an hour to reach a large opening, and what Godric saw took his breath away.

Large pillars, delicately carved with intricate patterns rise from the earth, so far below that he isn't even sure that he can see where they started. They were covered in gems of all kinds, and smothered with metals of all colors. Houses line the area, some made of the natural rocks of the cavern, others obviously brought in from elsewhere. Large white and black marble structures. Huge statues made with blinding green stone, massive blue monoliths scattered with white veins.

"This is the most beautiful place I have had the honour of seeing in my entire life," Godric breathed out, not even noticing the smug looks on the goblin's faces.

"This is the third largest goblin nation," Iron Tooth spoke, pride obvious in his voice.

"It is, stunning," Godric kept looking around in awe, until a large patrol of heavily armed soldier rushed up towards them.

"Sire! We are glad to see you arrived without incident," One outfitted more smartly then the others spoke, and Godric paled as Iron Tooth replies.

"Oh there were incidents, however they are no longer a problem, this way," Iron Tooth lead the group, the newcomers looking at Godric fiercely, towards the center of town.

 _'...sire? Oh shit.'_ Godric paled, and one of the goblins near him chuckled, obviously knowing why he looked so nervous.

They enter the largest building in the center of the town, carved from a sparkling purple crystalline gemstone of some kind, winding it's way up the cavern and branching higher and higher.

Iron Tooth moves forward and takes a seat on the throne, nearly causing Godric to pass out.

"Send for the head smith, I have need of him," Iron Tooth waves his hand, and a goblin quickly leaves to follow his orders.

"The head smith will be the one to help you with your weapon," Iron Tooth nodded at Godric, who was trying not to have his mouth hanging open.

With a quick breath, Godric bowed low, "Thank you, your majesty."

Iron Tooth nodded, a slight smirk on his lips, and soon Godric found himself moving away with the head smith towards a different large building.

The head smith was twice as tall as Iron Tooth, and more muscled than any one Godric had ever met. He had scars and burns wrapped around his body, but seemed completely at home with the hot fires the forges were putting out.

"I heard from his Majesty about this weapon, let me see those gems of yours," the goblin grunted, and Godric carefully poured the gems into a large stone tray.

The goblin's eyes gained a starry look, "Gorgeous, absolutely gorgeous."

He picked up four of them, and peered at them through multiple different crystal discs of some kind, weighing them, and balancing them.

"These ones will do," he said at last, handing them back to Godric.

"Fill those with your magic, then we can get started," the goblin huffed, and disappeared into the bowels of the workshop.

Godric shrugged, and began to fill the gems, focusing intently. After a few moments, and a loud noise coming from the workshop, the head smith returned with a large package of something wrapped in leather. He was holding it delicately in his hands.

"I don't know what you did to deserve this, but what Sire says goes," the smith mumbled and carefully opened the package to show the most stunning metal Godric had ever seen.

"What is that?" Godric stared at the metal with awe.

"Don't have a name for it in human tongue," the goblin muttered, "Cold iron mixed with..." the goblin started muttering in Gobbledegook, "Star metal? Bah, very rare, very powerful."

"I thought cold iron blocked magic," Godric looked down at the metal, noticing the swirling patterns in it.

"Well you do to, don't you?"

Godric did have to smile at that, "Yes, indeed."

"Then you match," the goblin shrugged, and then let out a long sigh.

"Listen kid, I'm going to do the forging, you are going to be focusing your magic on the fires, and when I tell you the metal, got it? You are not smith and we do things my way."

"Of course," Godric nodded, eager to see what was going to happen.

"Humans," the goblin began muttering again, with a touch of distaste.

"Kid, I'm setting up a fire, when I tell you, you keep it where it is at, put your magic in it," the goblin huffed, and Godric nodded.

Godric watched in awe as the goblin began setting everything up, and then finally turned to the flame. Huge bellows forced the massive forge to roar with fire. EVen from where Godric was sitting he was sweating heavily from the heat.

"Keep it like this," the goblin spoke. Godric nodded and focused his magic on the fire and lost himself to the flames.

An indiscernible amount of time later a voice woke Godric from his stupor, "The blade kid, the blade!"

Godric blinked his eyes drowsily, but almost automatically, his magic stretched out into something new. He gasped as he felt his magic surround and seep into the metal, eagerly melding with it. He felt completely disconnected, and if he was physically aware, would have realized his body was bent almost double, after having toppled over.

A small hand shook his shoulder, and Godric slowly looked up with bleary eyes.

"Good job, stop now," a voice spoke from far down a tunnel, but Godric nodded, and collapsed completely as his magic released itself.

~~.~~

Godric woke slowly, his entire body aching with fatigue. He blinked his eyes and blurrily took in his surroundings.

He was laid out on a luxurious bed, in a room carved of pure white marble with bronze and gold gilded accents. A window to his right looked out upon the goblin city, and Godric slowly heaved himself up. As he was about to move towards the window, he saw a box laid out on the table that was near the foot of his bed. Moving closer, he saw a small pouch, which (with a quick look inside) was filled with his remaining gems. Godric then switched his attention to the long, beautifully carved box, and with gentle hands slowly opened it.

The sword inside was the most beautiful thing Godric had seen in his entire life. The pommel was made of the largest of the gems, and surrounded by a golden material, most likely copper or bronze, but was shining in a way he had never seen. On the very tip of the pommel was another, smaller gem, and the casting around it was intricately carved with celtic knots and beautiful patterns that rippled down into the hilt. Godric gaped at the hilt itself, recognizing the scale and leather that was bound it as a small amount of the items he had taken from the cockatrice. The cross guard was made of the same material as the pommel, with two more gems set on each branch. Multiple small rubies adorned the cross guard as well, adding a sense of decadence to the already stunning blade. Godric then turned to the blade itself, and carefully ran his hand over the length. He then gripped the sword up and raised it in front of him, deliriously happy with the weight. He moved carefully and swung it in front of him, almost jumping up and down with delight. He lowered his arm and looked into the box to look at the last item, a sheath made of dark leather, with beautiful red etching and highlights, and laughed as he saw that a large griffin had been etched into it.

With care, Godric slid his sword into the sheath, and then attached it to his belt. He left the room and looked around for a moment, before a guard moved up to him and directed him down the hallway to his left. He entered into a large room, with cushions and couches and chairs aplenty. Seating near a large table were Iron Tooth, and the Head Smith.

"Good you are awake," the smith spoke gruffly.

Godric gave a low bow, "I am sorry about that, I hadn't realized how much magic I was pushing into the sword. And may I say that it is by far the most beautiful piece I have ever seen in my life, the sheath and hilt only add to it's stunning grace."

The head smith huffed, and looked away, but Godric could swear he was blushing, "A blade as good as that deserves the best."

Godric smiled, his hand resting on the sheath, and then turned to Iron Tooth, "I...I believe I am unable to thank you for this gift, if the goblin nation ever has need of any assistance, I am duty bound to assist, for I was not expecting such a priceless exchange."

Iron Tooth thought for a moment, and nodded solemnly, "Let it be known that Godric Gryffindor is goblin friend. As such, he will be treated with respect by all goblins, and it will be his duty to help if he finds a goblin in need."

Godric had knelt at the beginning of the speech, and stood, once more going into a low bow.

He left the goblin nation soon after, sighing in quite relief at the sight of the sun. The place was stunning, but it was nice to see the open sky over his head once again.

He moved a ways away into the forest, and carefully pulled out the blade.

"First thing first," and Godric carefully moved his magic over the hilt, nullifying the effects of the cockatrice leather.

"Alright, now that it won't outright murder anyone," Godric nodded to himself, and carefully lifted the blade, and with a slash, cast a cutting curse.

Godric nearly tripped over his feet and fell when he saw the immediate effect. Every tree within the twenty meter cone in front of him slowly slid, and fell to the ground, the cut having gone straight through all of them.

"Ooh," Godric's mouth opened and closed like a fish, and he could hear his mother telling him he looked like an idiot.

A large smile split over Godric's face, as he glanced from the surroundings back to his sword.

"Oh, wow," Godric beamed, and actually did start jumping up and down across the (now) clearing.

~~.~~.~~.~~

It had been over two years since Godric had left his family home to go on his coming of age quest. He exhaled slowly as he came across the front gates, a small smile on his face.

He had grown during that time, and was now sporting a small beard, and had grown another two inches. He hummed quietly to himself as he dismounted, and carefully moved Hildred towards the stables.

"Lord Godric!" a servant shouted from nearby, and Godric frowned.

"Lord?" Godric voiced, and the servant appeared, proving to be the Steward.

"I see..." the Steward closed his eyes, "None of the couriers reached you then."

"Couriers? No, I haven't heard anything...did something happen?" Godric allowed for one of the stable hands to take Hildred, as his whole attention was on the man in front of him.

The Steward took a breath, "My Lord...the previous Lord and Lady were found dead two months ago."

Godric blinked once, then again, "Excuse me, could you repeat that, I swore..."

"Please, sir, let's move inside," the Steward gently lead Godric inside, and Godric found himself sitting on one of the couches in the lounge, not noticing as tea was served up in front of him.

"What happened?" Godric ignored the food and drink, and the Steward grimaced.

"I am not certain, my Lord, but two months ago we found the previous Lord Gryffindor dead in his room, with what seemed to be..." the Steward's voice moved to a whisper, "magical blast marks on the walls...and when we went to look for Lady Gryffindor..."

The Steward's face pinched.

"What? What happened to Mother?"

"She...seemed to have hanged herself," the steward spoke so quietly that Godric could pretend he hadn't heard what he did.

Almost.

"No, she would never, why would she?" Godric took a deep breath of air.

"That isn't possible, I, did someone look into it?"

"No, My Lord...because of the...magical situation and the fact that whoever attacked your father did it from inside the house, we have been keeping it a secret from most. Sir Roderick as well as some of the other magic hunters know, and have been trying to find out who did it...but they have not succeeded."

Godric nodded, and took a sip from his tea. He stared blankly ahead, and then slowly rose, "I...I believe I am going to...put my things down, then I will...look into this matter as well."

The Steward hastily nodded, and Godric slowly moved back up to his childhood room.

He opened the door slowly and dropped his packs on the ground, propping the sheathed sword against the wall. He made it halfway to his bed before his knees collapsed underneath him. His shoulders were shaking, and black was creeping in from the edges of his vision. He started taking slow controlled breaths, and let his head land on the floor as he tried to control his reaction.

He wasn't sure how long he knelt there, but the windows had long grown dark by the time he slowly levered himself up.

He carefully walked over the rest of the way to the bed, but stopped as he noticed a charmed letter sitting on his desk.

He quickly stumbled over, and cancelled the charm that was applied, apparently one to make people not notice it, and held back a gulp when he saw his mother's familiar handwriting on the front.

 _Godric_

Godric fell back onto the bed, and carefully opened the envelope.

 _To My Dearest Son,_

 _I am so sorry, Godric, so, so very sorry. I don't know when you will return, or how you will hear about this, but if you remember one thing, please let it be that I am sorry._

 _I am penning this letter to you after...after something horrible occurred. Your father found out that I had magic, and correctly guessed that you had it as well. He was about to send a group of men out to hunt you down and kill you, and I couldn't let that happen._

 _I am to blame here Godric, I had to keep you from that, to keep us all safe._

 _I killed him._

 _And, I can't live with myself, after having done that. He was the love of my life, and you are grown and oh so wonderful. I have heard tales-both from magicals and non magicals, of what you have done, and you are beyond perfect._

 _I can't live without him, and I am so sorry, Godric, Son, that I will be leaving you alone._

 _I love you._

 _Lillian Gryffindor_

Godric stared at the tear stained, smudged paper, and then crinkled it in his hand. He crumbled it into his fist, and then threw it towards the wall.

Two hours later, Godric carefully picked up the letter, and laid it on his desk with shaking hands. He carefully folded the letter up, and put it away.

~~.~~

"Come on Godric, you have been stuck here forever, you need to get out into the world again while you are still young!" Sir Roderick bemoaned, and Godric shrugged slightly.

"I've been busy, there hasn't been time besides the ones that actually sent in letters for my attention," Godric spoke, not looking up from the papers he was shuffling through.

"That is it!" Sir Roderick threw his hand down in the middle of the papers, forcing Godric to look up at him.

"Grab your stuff, I have heard news of a possible magic user down south. It is a one day journey. You are not staying cooped up in this house do you hear me?"

Godric blinked.

"DO YOU HEAR ME?!"

"Yes," Godric leaned back and got up, moving _away_ from the crazy man, "Yes, I'll...go get my stuff."

"Good," Roderick huffed, and nodded, leaving the room.

Godric shook his head, and went to gather items that would be necessary. It would be a lot more difficult this time, as Godric had never gone out with another knights, and he would have to hide his magic.

"No expanding packs, no random magical saves, definitely no interacting with magical people," Godric sighed, "What am I going to do?"

Godric finished packing at dinner, and they soon were off with the high sun light.

"Is it true you killed a basilisk?" Roderick spoke after a short while, and Godric looked up, confused.

"No? I killed a cockatrice though, that was...unpleasant. I did get my sword out of it, though."

Roderick stared at him with wide eyes, "A-a cockatrice!" His voice became shrill at the end.

"Yes? I was hunting red caps-"

"You fought a cockatrice! How old were you! Why didn't you tell anyone I thought that that the basilisk thing was just a rumor!"

"Oh..nearly, eighteen I believe? And why does it matter so much?" Godric blinked lazily at the man across from him.

"Godric," Roderick spoke slowly, "No one kills a cockatrice by themselves. NO. ONE. They see it, usually die, and then eventually someone comes back and then an entire _encampment_ goes out to kill it."

"Oh, huh..."

" _How_ did you kill it?" Roderick nearly had his face in his hands.

"I had a rooster," Godric felt a small smile nearly creep onto his face, for the first time in a year.

"You had a rooster," Roderick looked at him as though he wanted to punch him, " _Why did you have a rooster?"_

"In case I ran into a cockatrice Roderick, please keep up," Godric grinned, and Roderick's head slammed into his saddle horn.

"Oh lord how, how do you even exist," Roderick moaned, causing Godric to snicker.

"Well, Roderick when a man and a woman-"

"Don't you dare you little brat!" Roderick glowered at him, "I AM THE ONE WHO HAD TO GIVE YOU THAT TALK IN THE FIRST PLACE!"

Godric sat back in his saddle, laughing hysterically, and once he calmed himself, looked over at the smug look on Roderick's face.

"What?"

"I told you so," Roderick smirked, "Just two hours out of that place and I got you to laugh."

Godric smiled, "Fine, you were right just this once," the smile turned into the frown, "But not about that hat you idiot."

Roderick was the one who broke into laughter this time, and started crying when he saw Godric actually take it out of his pack.

"Why, why did you bring that!" Roderick exclaimed between breaths.

Godric shrugged, "Good luck charm, survived so far didn't I?"

Roderick shook his head, still chuckling occasionally as they rode on.

~~.~~

They rode on until the night started to encroach into the sky, and set up a small camp on the side of the path.

Godric quickly set up a line of salt around the camp, and Roderick set up a cold iron stakes in each corner.

They had a small dinner, and were readying up their tent, when Godric felt a shiver go down his spine.

He slowly looked over his shoulder, and turned to stand, hand falling to his sword. Roderick reacted immediately, and stood shoulder to shoulder with him.

A figure stood just outside their salt line, large gray cloak billowing in an unseen wind.

"Who are you?" Godric said, stepping forward with care.

In response the woman threw the hood off of her face.

And screamed.

Godric swore, and moved back again, face paling at the sight of the wailing woman before him.

And as suddenly as she came, she disappeared into the murky darkness.

"Godric," Roderick spoke quietly, and Godric just nodded.

"Godric...that was a banshee," Roderick closed his eyes, face tense.

"...yes it was," Godric swallowed, and moved over to the fire, face pale and drawn.

Roderick swore lightly and sat down in a pile of limbs next to him.

"...care to tell me more about what we are hunting?" Godric spoke quietly, his heart still beating far too fast.

"...people have been disappearing from their beds, sometimes kids will just disappear from the fields as well once night hits. Some people have said they hear shuffling, and someone speaking. And I heard...one person talking about claw marks that had gouged into a stone house..." Roderick sighed lowly.

"...and now banshee has come, foretelling someone's death," Godric looked out into the darkness, and then his eyes widened even more.

"Roderick...I believe we may be surrounded by barghests," Godric spoke slowly.

Roderick looked up his eyes wide, and then closed them in defeat, "Well, never mind about this being a fun journey to get you back on your feet."

"They can't get in, we are fine, and this just means we _have_ to go," Godric looked over at him, and Roderick nodded, fierce determination filling his face.

"Yes, with all of these signs, whatever is plaguing that village must be dealt with."

"Go get some sleep, I will take the first shift," Godric motioned back to the tent, and Roderick rolled his eyes, but did go to sleep soon after.

~~.~~

Godric and Roderick switched watch, and when Godric awoke they had a light meal, and set off towards the town at a quick pace.

They reached it by midmorning, and Godric could feel the anxiety of the townsfolk as they stayed near their houses, not even daring to approach the strangers who entered their town.

Godric swiftly dismounted, and tied his horse to a small tree near the middle of town, Roderick following closely behind.

"Excuse me sir," Godric stayed a distance away from one of the townspeople, "We heard about the situation that was occurring here, and would like to know if you have any information."

"You hunters?" the man spoke, not moving from his place near his house.

"Yes," Roderick spoke, "This is Godric Gryffindor, and I am Roderick Keaton."

The man blinked, and gave out a small sigh, tension easing a little from his frame, "Ah, I have heard of you both My Lords, I don't know much, but the wise woman knows, she can tell ya."

The man pointed down the lane, and Godric and Roderick both followed the direction until they came across a small hut near the edge, the flat plains going off into the distance.

Godric knocked lightly on the door, and a voice bade them to enter. The two had to stoop there heads a bit to not hit the frame.

An old woman sat in front of a small fire, heating a small pot. Bundles of herbs hung from the ceiling. A small dog was sleeping on the bed, legs twitching as it ran after something in it's dreams.

"You here about the hag?" the woman spoke, voice rough with age.

"Hag? You already know what it is?" Godric blinked.

"Yes," Roderick nodded, the woman gestured for them to sit.

"Seen it before, when I was a child," the woman stirred the pot in front of her,"Parents used to tell us, 'beware of Black Annis, she'll skin ya alive if ya stay out late."

Godric blinked, "Black Annis..." He grit his teeth.

"That...would explain a lot," Roderick shook his head.

"It happened when you were a child, what made the events stop?" Godric questioned, and the woman shook her head.

"Nothing, I expect it got full."

Godric breathed out slowly, "And now it is hungry again...do you have any idea where it is? A large boulder nearby, or perhaps a dead tree?"

"Aye, there is one, down the field a ways. Old dead tree next to a dried up riverbank," the woman pointed in the direction.

"Thank you for the information," Roderick gave her a polite bow, which Godric copied.

The woman just shook her head, looking at the two with pitying eyes.

They moved outside in tandem, looking over at the area where the Black Annis was said to live.

"Do you know how to kill it?" Roderick spoke.

Godric shrugged, "Chop off it's head and burn the remains?"

"Isn't Black Annis a witch who went...too far? Can we even kill her? I thought she was just a myth?" Roderick scrubbed a hand through his hair.

"We need to check out the lair, and be ready for anything," Godric moved back to his pack, cinching it around his waist, and gathered everything he might need.

He and Roderick moved quickly across the field, walking as quietly as they could. Roderick was in front, Godric behind, and they carefully found their way to the dry river bed.

"Do you see any trees?" Godric spoke quietly, and Roderick shook his head. They moved together, and Godric followed closely behind Roderick.

It was nearly midday when Godric stopped moving, a horrible feeling making the hairs on his neck stand up straight. He slowly looked over his shoulder, and met a horrifying face of a pale decaying blue with bright red eyes.

Then he let out a scream as he felt something plunge through his back into his gut, causing him to fall forward with a cry of agony.

"GODRIC!" Roderick turned and swung as Godric fell, nearly hitting the crone in the face, but she moved quickly out of the way.

Godric breathed, clenching his teeth as he felt the pain with every breath.

He looked up eyes, bleary, and saw Roderick and the crone fighting.

And Roderick was losing.

Roderick blocked one long disproportionate, clawed arm, but the other was raised high, and Godric knew it wouldn't miss.

So he did the only thing he could.

A cutting curse flew through the arm, severing the arm just over the elbow, causing the witch to scream in agony.

Roderick froze in place, eyes almost darting to Godric, before he moved back and swiftly chopped off the woman's head.

The field went far to quiet, and Godric staggered to his feet, stumbling back, unable to stop the flow of blood down his back.

"What did you just do, Godric?" Roderick's face was completely blank.

Godric didn't reply and moved to the side as Roderick approached him, moving around the other man.

"Because I will tell you what I just saw, and I swear...I swear you waved your sword and then _her arm flew off_ , but that shouldn't be possible, **because there is no way a** _ **GRYFFINDOR**_ **has magic!"** Roderick shouted the last part, making Godric flinch.

Godric didn't respond, and didn't even look Roderick in the face.

A sword suddenly pushed up under his chin resting just above his jugular.

"Please explain this to me Godric," Roderick spoke.

"I have magic," Godric whispered, and watched as Roderick's face turned black with hatred.

That isn't possible!" Roderick moved forward, making Godric take another step back.

"Mother had magic, I got it from her," Godric spoke quietly, sweat and blood pouring down his tunic.

"So what, you have been lying to us all along? You've been helping these...these devil creatures!" Roderick spat, and Godric tried to shake his head, but swiftly remembered the sword at his neck.

"No, I killed the creatures that were dangerous, that is my _job_ I didn't betray you," Godric blinked as Roderick moved a step back.

"Draw your sword," the other man growled.

"No," Godric spoke quietly looking his...previous...friend straight in the eye.

"Godric Gryffindor, you have been found to be a user of black magics, and have been sentenced to death. _Now draw your sword."_

Godric stood where he was, sword still hung limply by his side.

He closed his eyes, and breathed out a slow breath.

A force suddenly tackled him, and an unworldly shriek rose in the air, followed by a pained breath.

Godric opened his eyes, and grabbed at Roderick, who was falling to the ground with a gaping wound straight through his chest.

Godric turned and nearly barfed at the sight next to him. The headless, one armed crone was standing on two legs, it's hand covered in gore.

Reacting quickly, Godric reached out and grabbed the creature's stump arm.

And nullified it.

A scream came from the decapitated head as the entire figure began to shrivel and shrink, collapsing in on itself until all that was left was dust.

Godric breathed out, and then groaned as Roderick's weight and blood loss forced him to the ground.

"Roderick?" Godric spoke, brokenly.

Roderick was breathing wetly, blood dripping down his face.

"Roderick...why?" Godric wasn't surprised to feel tears dripping down his face, and they landed on Roderick's soiled tunic.

Roderick blinked, eyes trying to focus, but seeming unable to.

"Stupid...little brother," Roderick groaned out, before his eyes nearly closed.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, please, please Roderick," Godric cried, holding his friend closer.

"I...I don't...forgive you," Roderick whispered into the afternoon sun, and then collapsed back, his breath stopped forever.

Godric wasn't sure how long he sat there, the sun beating down on his back and head, holding Roderick tightly in his grasp.

A small sound made him slowly look up, and he didn't even react as he saw the same banshee as before standing above him.

Godric stared at the sidhe blankly, and blinked slowly as a long, slim hand carefully grabbed his arm, pulling him up with surprising strength. Godric had Roderick half pulled up with him, and the banshee waved her hand, and Roderick was suddenly feather light.

Godric wasn't sure what happened after that point, but when he could think again he found himself just outside the edge of the village, Roderick back to his normal weight, and the fae woman nowhere in sight.

Godric barely made it into the village before he was surrounded by people shouting and moving around.

He got his eyes to focus on one familiar face, the old woman from before.

"It's dead," he managed to slur out, before finally succumbing to unconscious.

~~.~~

Godric woke slowly, and stared at the crumbling roof above him.

"Good, you are awake, drink," a voice spoke from somewhere nearby, and Godric huffed as something was pushed in front of his face.

He carefully grabbed it, and drank it down, making a face at the taste.

He looked over at the old woman, and nodded in thanks.

"We sent some men down to the river to check...they found the remains of the missing villagers nearby," the woman spoke quietly.

Godric nodded, blinking his eyes a bit, and a frown furrowed over his face.

"How long have I been asleep?" Godric asked.

"Less then a day," the woman replied.

"I...I believe I should be in a lot more pain than this, and I probably shouldn't be able to move..." Godric slowly turned his back.

"I am very good at my job, young man," the woman, smirked, and Godric's eyes widened, before he nodded.

"Thank you...I...do you know what happened to my friends...body?" Godric asked.

The woman sighed, "It was burned, in this sun it would have rotted in a day, I'm sorry."

Godric shook his head and carefully got to his feet, "No, that is...what we usually do. So no one can bring us back."

"Ah," the woman nodded, and then carefully placed a package in Godric's hand.

"The ashes," she said without prompting, and Godric nodded solemnly.

"Thank you for healing me," Godric gave a short bow, and headed to the door.

~~.~~

The ride home was quiet, there was no one else on the road, and Godric rode silently, Roderick's empty saddle next to him filling the road with a sad note.

Godric made it back to his home, and penned out a message for the other witch hunters to know that Roderick had died a noble death, protecting a friend from the Black Annis.

He finally sat back down on his bed, staring out into the the night. He stayed awake and blinked quietly from his thoughts as a rooster crowed in the distance.

Godric rose from his bed, and soon began to pack away everything he would need.

He spoke to the steward, and then mounted his horse once more.

He had work to do.

~~.~~.~~.~~.~~

Four years had passed since the incident with the Black Annis, and the Gryffindor name was now the most well known when anyone was having problems with magical creatures. People knew it far and wide, and it was said that he traveled the lands, never stopping, always searching through forests and bogs to get rid of dangerous creatures.

For the magicals, he was known for that, as well as being the best way to keep everyone safe. If a wizard or witch was found, the non magicals would usually call Godric to kill them, and he would make this big noise of taking the tainted being away from the villages so that they wouldn't be cursed.

Then he would harangue the person for getting caught, help them with a disguise, and send them to a new village.

Godric did what he must, and that was it...until one day a group of bandits thought that he would be an easy target.

~~.~~

Godric ducked under a sloppy hatchet blow, and sliced his sword forward. The bandit in front of him screamed as the blade tore through ligament and muscle, then let out a gurgle and went slack, falling to the ground in a heap. Godric pivoted on his feet and blocked another blow, twisting to move around his opponent. He smacked the man with his shield, and swiftly chopped off his head. He turned once more, focusing on the third bandit when he heard a grunt from behind him. Cursing, he tried to whirl around to block an attack to the back, when a sharp high noise punctuated the area. It was followed by a squelch, and then a thud.

Godric quickly finished off the last bandit, and turned around. The bandit that had been sneaking up behind him was twitching on the ground, a dagger sticking out of his eye socket, and foam lingering at the corners of his mouth.

Godric whistled, and looked around, "Nice throw!"

He heard a scoff coming from a nearby tree, and his eyebrows raised as he saw some kid jump down and land lightly in his feet.

The kid was a skinny little thing, pale, with long black hair held back in a messy pony tail. He had no facial hair, and a scowl was on his lips. His eyes were the brightest green that Godric had ever seen, and he had one eyebrow raised with a derisive sort of look. He was wearing a long brown leather coat, done up with clasps along the left side down to his belt. From what Godric could see, there were pouches all along the coat, and it had long sleeves that nearly covered the end of the kid's fingers. He was wearing leather gloves as well, which seemed to have metal clinched on the fingertips. Underneath the coat, Godric could see a rich green tunic, and black trousers.

"Please, that was a simple throw," the teen spoke, trudging forward with his eyes focused on Godric. He stooped down on the other side of the body, and quickly snagged the knife and slipped it into his sleeve.

Godric shrugged, a bright smile crossed his face, "If you say so, but thanks all the same, that wouldn't have hurt to bad, but would have been annoying. I'm Godric Gryffindor." Godric held out his hand for a shake, but the teen had paled when he spoke his name, and stepped back sharply.

The eyes had narrowed, and Godric tilted his head at the sudden tension...which didn't make sense...unless...

"OH!" Godric smiled even wider, and the teen stared at him, "No, no, no worries! Watch!"

Godric then pulled out his sword, causing the teen to move even further back.

"No, don't worry, watch!" Godric gave a small twist of the blade, and a cutting curse went across the meadow, trimming the weeds as it went.

"Wh-what?" the teen stared blankly, but quickly masked his expression, a questioning look filled his eyes, "But, you are a Gryffindor...isn't that the family most well known for hunting magic?"

Godric shrugged, and smiled, amused at how the teen scowled.

The teen raised an eyebrow again, "If you have magic, why didn't you use it to incapacitate those bandits, it would have taken you much less time."

Godric shrugged easily, "That isn't really fair is it? And this way was more fun!"

The boy's eye twitched, and Godric swore he heard a mutter of "oaf".

"I told you my name, what is yours?" Godric continued, beaming.

"...Salazar Slytherin," the supposedly dead heir of the Noble Slytherin family spoke.

Godric's mouth dropped, "Weren't you killed in the fire?"

The teen opposite him smirked, "and aren't Gryffindors merciless magic killers?"

Okay, he could give the teen that one.

"How..." Godric trailed off when he saw the look of annoyance tempered with nervousness.

The lost Slytherin heir. Godric almost smiled, this kid, his family, had been the ones to give Godric the push to save people with his talents. To help hide magicals from non-magicals and to do all he could to protect as many people as possible. And this little twit was alive!

Apparently, he had started beaming again, and the kid leaned back with a tense line on his shoulders.

Godric blinked, "So wait, did you use magic then? I didn't feel anything?"

Salazar snorted, "For something like this? Of course not, I simply threw a knife."

"With poison on it, homemade?" Godric questioned with amusement.

"Yes, well..." Salazar waved a hand, and then crossed his arms over his chest, staring at Godric.

"So you are good at potions then? I never studied them as a child, had to hide that I was magic you see, and all the ingredients and things for potions are a bit obvious," Godric continued, and hid a smirk at the interest that lighted the teen's eyes.

"What do you know then?"

"Dueling, both magical and non magical, and Transfiguration are my best. I know some basic charms and such as well, just everyday things, my mother taught them to me while I was growing up. What about you?"

Salazar's face blanked for a moment, and he stared straight into Godric's eyes. He blinked, and then seemed to nod to himself, "I...am mostly self taught, as my family was killed when I was six. As all of the Slytherin line, I am a Parselmouth-"

"A what?"

"I can talk to snakes," Salazar raised an eyebrow, and Godric gestured dramatically for him to continue, making the kid roll his eyes, " They were able to teach me about potions and poisons. I...learned about runes and am quite good with them, as well as healing."

"And knives, " Godric pointed out, and a small smile flitted around Salazar's lips.

"Yes, and knives."

Godric smiled again, noticing that the teen had relaxed a bit, "What are you doing out here in the middle of nowhere anyway? Oh great and noble heir of the Slytherin line?"

That actually did cause the kid to smile, then give a noble sniff as he raised his chin, giving him an air of disdain.

"I shall have you know that I was looking for herbs in the area, then heard a right raucous coming from the glenn."

"So you in all of your honorable curiosity decided to climb a tree and take a look," Godric wasn't even covering his laughter.

"Exactly," Salazar nodded, and then looked around, "What are you doing here?"

Godric shrugged, "Hunting bandits, heard of a possible group of Sluagh, thought I would take a look. Have you heard of any?"

Salazar grimaced, "No, but it would not be good of them to be here..." The kid then looked up in the sky and grimaced, as he saw that the sun was beginning to set.

"You have a camp set up kid?" Godric gestured with his hand at the surroundings.

The kid shrugged, causing Godric to roll his eyes.

"Well, come on then. I have one set up a little ways away, near the river, more than enough room for you to stay there as well."

And the kid was back to staring at him, but had a touch of surprise in his eyes.

"...well, if you insist it would be rude of me to refuse," Salazar responded.

Godric rolled his eyes, but smiled, "Come on then."

And he began to lead his way back to his camp.

~~.~~

"This...this is..." Godric stared at the bowl of soup, his spoon trembling in his hand.

Salazar looked up, concern on his face, "...I...it should be fine, does it taste fine?"

"Fine? FINE?" Godric yelled into the night, "This is delicious!"

Salazar slumped, forward, his head nearly cracking on the cooking pot, altogether missing Godric's wide smile at making him react again.

Godric could hear the kid swearing under his breath, some kind of combination of a list of swear words and hisses.

It was actually quite impressive, even if he didn't know what the kid was saying.

"How'd you learn to cook?" Godric grinned and took another sip.

"Necessity," Salazar mumbled, his eyes downcast. He fidgeted, and then leaned back, seemingly staring at Godric out of the corner of his eye.

Godric finished the soup, and smiled at Salazar, "Here, I can clean up, since you cooked."

Godric waved his hand over the fire, and the empty pot was cleaned, the plates cleaned and stacked and then everything was put away into an expandable bag.

Salazar made a sharp noise, and Godric looked over at him.

The teen was leaning over, his eyes bright, "What spell did you use?"

Godric blinked, "Just a basic cleaning spell, 'scourgify' tempered with a levitation spell...the most basic version is 'alohomora.'"

Salazar nodded, his fingers twitching.

"You...you never learned any of the basic spells?" Godric spoke, and watched as Salazar frowned.

"No...I've never had the time..." He shrugged, seeming to be nonchalant.

Godric looked at him, and then his face slowly turned into a maniacal grin, "Ohohoho, well then!"

Salazar began to lean back as Godric jumped to his feet, drawing his sword and raising it skyward.

"Then it is my duty to teach you these basics, and as such, we shall travel together-

"Please no" deadpanned Salazar.

"A joyous companionship between two-"

"Go away" a pleading tone entered his voice.

"And together, we shall lead the world into a new order!"

"Wait...what?"

"And through the basic spells of color change and making things emit loud squeaks-"

"Téigh trasna ort féin!" Salazar swore, but Godric saw a smile sprout over his face before he turned away.

Godric laughed, and the two set up the camp for the night.

Salazar walked around the camp, his hands drawing strange symbols in the air.

"What are you doing?" Godric followed him around, staying at pace behind him.

"Setting up wards for the night," The kid spoke, barely paying attention.

Godric's eyes widened, looking around at the circular map of the camp they were taking.

"That...is seriously impressive, I've never heard of any one who could do this, I mean, usually you have to write it down at least!"

The kid made a sort of shuffling sound, and Godric knew if he could see his face that he would be beet red.

Godric smiled, and then they both headed to their respective sleep cots.

~~.~~

The first thing Godric would like for everyone to know about Salazar Slytherin is that he is a little shit.

After a few tense days of the kid being constantly wary around him, he had relaxed a bit. Which should have made Godric happy that the kid had finally calmed down, but apparently calm was equivalent to sarcastic asshole in Salazar speak.

Godric would be lying if he said he didn't find it hysterical.

The kid looked and acted like a posh spoiled noble's child half the time, and the other half Godric would swear the kid had grown up in a back alley. Even Godric got red faced at some of the phrases that came out of the brat's mouth.

"So why are you travelling around like this all the time, I mean, don't you have a family to go back to?" Salazar asked one day, and Godric shrugged, "Nah, they all died years ago, there isn't anything left for me to go back to. What about you? You got a girl tucked away wherever home is?"

Salazar nodded dryly, "Several actually, it is quite a hassle to be with all of them at once, which is why I decided to go on a trip."

Godric coughed, and began choking.

Salazar smirked at him, and then the smirk turned into an actual smile, " I somehow manage to find kids who have magic quite often, and usually they don't have parents to look out for them, so I have an estate where they usually stay. It gets quite rowdy sometimes, which is when I usually go on trips to collect items for my potions."

Godric blinked in complete surprise, "huh...but isn't it dangerous leaving a bunch of kids alone like that?"

Salazar shrugged and looked away, "They lived on the streets for most of their lives, they don't need anyone babying them. They can take care of themselves. I just help them hide their magic."

Godric smiled lightly, and laughed as Salazar blushed.

"You might be a brat, but you're a good kid," Godric patted Salazar's head fondly, causing him to hiss like his favorite animal.

"Get off!" Salazar struggled for a moment, then with a wave of his hands Godric found himself frozen in place as the kid stomped away.

"Why don't you have a wand?" Godric asked one night as he was showing Salazar how to do some basic charm work.

"Why don't you?" Salazar bantered back.

"My magic doesn't work well with most implements, it is a trait of my family to be able to nullify magic. So I have to find something very specific for it to actually work," Godric said plainly.

Salazar blinked, and stared at the man as if he had two heads.

"And you?" Godric motioned at him.

Salazar hunched a bit, then spoke to his boots, "I...didn't know where or how to get one...so some friends helped me make my gloves," he wiggled his fingers, pushing back his coat so Godric could see them for the first time.

They were made of some kind of black snake skin (go figure) and had bronze or copper plating that went from just under his elbows in plates, then over his wrist and palm, as well as the back of his hand. The metal didn't cover the the fingers, but there was a small amount placed over the tip of each one.

"May I?" Godric motioned towards the gloves, and when Salazar nodded he carefully moved it around startled at the movement of the metal.

"Those are a lot more adjustable and mobile then they look," he spoke, and felt Salazar shrug.

"I made them with my magic, so they fit what was necessary," he pulled his hand back.

"That is why you can do the runes the way you do, isn't it!" Godric smiled and Salazar slowly nodded, curling a bit back into himself.

"That is amazing!" Godric kept smiling, but noted in the back of his mind how startled the kid was.

"...it isn't that important," Salazar tucked his head into the collar of his jacket, a sign Godric was getting familiar with meaning that the kid wanted to change the topic.

Godric nodded, and they both went back to work.

~~.~~

Godric was relaxing on a rock, his head falling back in contemplation of the increasingly rare sunlight as the headed closer to Salazar's home.

 _'To check to make sure no one has killed each other yet.'_ As the kid had said, and who was Godric to begrudge him that?

Godric froze as he felt something climb up the rock next to him, and slowly opened his eyes to find a snake staring right at him.

Godric screamed.

Looking back on this moment, Godric is almost _certain_ the snake screamed as well.

They flung apart, and Salazar came rushing into the area, knife drawn to see what was going on.

His face drained of color, and he rushed over to Godric," Oh, oh gods. Are you-oh gods."

He was patting Godric's chest and had one hand carefully checking Godric's pulse.

"I'm fine Salazar, just a bit startled by THE SNAKE THAT WAS CLIMBING ON ME!" Godric replied, but Salazar's eyes were still wide.

"Ifreann na Fola, how are you still alive!" Salazar was nearly shaking where he was crouched.

"What, it didn't attack me or anything. I'm fine?" Godric spoke, and quickly looked back over at the animal that was curled up on the ground, almost as if it was pouting.

It did look strangely familiar...just like a...

"Is that your pet basilisk?" Godric said, and hid a smile as Salazar slumped.

"No. I mean, yes, no, she is my familiar, _how are you alive, you looked right at her eyes!"_

"I'm immune," Godric shrugged, and Salazar stared at him deadpan, before falling back in a heap, his familiar slithering forward to sit on his head.

Godric chuckled.

"I hate you, all of you," Salazar sighed from where he was sprawled.

"What is her name?" Godric moved forward and placed his hand near the snake, letting it decide what to do.

"Doireann," Salazar mumbled, and said named basilisk was now rubbing its snout against Godric's hand, "pet her, I don't care anymore."

"You named her after the woman who tried to poison the all wise Irish hero," Godric blinked, and Salazar didn't even try to reply.

Godric carefully scratched her head, "You are much prettier than the cockatrice a ran into, that thing was nasty."

He blinked, and looked down at his companion who was still lying there with a happy snake just sitting on his face, "Can you talk to cockatrices?"

"No, doesn't work, one of the journals I found-snakes, sometimes dragons, yes, chicken dragons no," Salazar mumbled, and startled a laugh out of Godric.

"Chicken dragons, oh geez kid," Godric shook his head with disbelief.

Salazar let out a little chuckle as well.

~~.~~

"HE'S BACK AND HE HAD AN OLD MAN WIT' HIM!" a voice rang out, startling Godric out of his conversation with Salazar.

"Wait, old?" Godric voice raised quite high with the last word, "I am not old! I am in my prime! The peak of physical and mental perfection!"

"Mia, please be nice to Godric, you know how sensitive people get in their old age," Salazar, the little shit, was smirking at a tree where a small head had poked around.

"If I haff ta," the midget behind the tree pouted, but smiled as she launched herself at Salazar.

The kid was apparently used to that, and continued to walk with a limpet attached to his side.

Godric hid a smile with his hand, especially after the midget started trying to give him the evil eye.

It wasn't even close to some of the looks Godric had gotten from Salazar. He was actually starting to name a few of them, ranging from 'I don't understand how someone like you can exist in this world,' to 'that's it I am done with this place, let me off now."

Godric smirked as four more kids, probably from age eight to twelve launched themselves at Salazar the minute they saw him.

Salazar stood for a moment, allowing them to cling, before pushing them back with his magic.

"Aww. but we missed you!" the oldest one, a girl with short brown hair and brown eyes, complained from where she had landed on the ground.

"I hadn't noticed Muirgen," Salazar sighed, and then waved his hand behind him.

"This is Godric Gryffindor, he is a...friend," Salazar looked up quickly with those last words, as if judging Godric's reaction.

Godric beamed.

Salazar's face seemed to lighten, "He has magic too, and knows proper ways to use it."

"Ooh!" The only boy of the group, he was probably around nine, piped up, "What can he do!?"

Godric smiled, and pointed his sword at a small rock near the kids feet. With a wave, it turned into a speckled kitten.

The kid's eyes widened, and he carefully pet the cat, the other three joining him.

The midget who had been glaring at him earlier was now staring at the cat with wide eyes, "...awesome."

Salazar, Godric could see, also wanted to pet the cat, but seemed to be holding himself back.

"How long will it last?" Salazar looked over at him, and Godric shrugged.

"A day, probably, I didn't put a lot of magic into it, so not too long," Godric shrugged.

Salazar blinked, sighed, and looked away, shaking his head.

"Mia is the one who you met first, the girl who has blonde hair is Alexis. The boy is Tobias, and the oldest girl is Muirgen, I found them all while I was...exploring," Salazar moved forward.

"So you just pick up kids?" Godric grinned.

Salazar shrugged, "I...do what I can to help them control themselves, and then they go off again. Some stay here, like Muirgen has, and others stay for a couple days to get a semblance of control before doing what they do."

"That is really amazing," Godric grinned at him, and laughed quietly as the kid blushed.

"It is necessary," the kid blustered, "if non magicals find them they will be killed, and more people will know we exist. It is _dangerous_."

Godric nodded, and followed Salazar into his house, the kids trailing behind.

"I must have just died," Godric muttered as they passed the library.

"Hrm?" Salazar walked back towards him.

"You do know your family is one of the most renowned for knowing how to deal with magical beast right?" Godric moved over to a large pile of books, trying not to drool.

"Oh, no, I hadn't realized that," Salazar blinked.

"At least half of the books I used, for magic and not, were Slytherin family books," Godric quirked a smile at him.

"Huh," Salazar blinked again, and then shrugged turning away, "Well, as it is, their probably won't be any more, my specialties lie with other interests."

"Yeah, but you are brilliant with potions and wards, so I bet if you wanted to write about them you could," Godric nodded at him, and then followed him out of the library.

~~.~~

Godric spent the next couple months working with Salazar and the "hellions" as he liked to call them.

Salazar never said anything, so Godric assumed he agreed.

Godric still went out on hunts, but surprisingly enough Salazar went with him more often than naught, either claiming interest in the flora of the area, or deciding that Godric needed someone to watch his back.

It worked quite well, though usually ended with Godric having to pull the kid back before he went and shanked or hexed random people.

"If we kill them _before they are a problem_ then that problem doesn't exist!"

"...no, just...just no Salazar."

"Gah, morals."

"Oh yes, how horrible _, morals."_

"Are you taunting me, Godric?"

"Me? Never! That would be below my _morals_ to taunt childre-urk."

"Shut up, if you don't want me stabbing them I suggest we leave, there is a pub a little ways down."

"Oh of course My Lord."

"I'm glad that you have corrected your term of address, Lord Gryffindor."

"You are a little shit Salazar."

"Thank you."

Godric hadn't even realized a whole year had passed, and was actually surprised at how much...better everything was. They were a terrifying team when grouped together, and it was always nice to have a healer nearby when things went the tiniest bit wrong.

Like the time he nearly lost an arm, but, details.

There had been noise in a small town in the north that were the markings for a sorcerer gone mad, so Godric headed up that way, with Salazar once again as his tag along.

They had reached a crossroads, and were fighting with each other over which direction would be the fastest, when a figure walked by from the right crossroads path.

He was walking at a normal pace, a light pack on his back and a bland look on his face.

Godric would have ignored him entirely, if not for the way Salazar suddenly froze and stepped back, hand hidden in his sleeves as Godric knew he was grabbing some of his more potent knives.

Godric turned his head just in time to see a light of comprehension fill the man's face, and then it turned into a bloodthirsty grin.

"It seems, you found me," the man smirked, and then with movements quicker then anything Godric had seen, sent a blasting curse straight at them.

Interesting enough, he mainly seemed to be aiming at Salazar.

Godric raised his sword, and the curse was nullified, but it still sent the blast in the area around them.

"Gods," Godric rolled over, trying to keep himself between Salazar and the sorcerer, but there was a large outpouring of smoke from the blast.

Godric felt movement next to him, and swung, then froze as he saw a corpse holding a large sword that had blocked his blow.

"Necromancer," Godric growled, hopefully loud enough for Salazar to hear.

Then an earth shattering scream rent through the air, and Godric quickly rushed through the fog.

Salazar was lying on the ground, his back arched, hands and feet digging into the earth as he screamed until it seemed he couldn't. Tears were streaming down his face, but seemed to be evaporating as soon as the hit his cheeks.

Godric rushed forward, and toppled into the Necromancer, hopefully breaking whatever curse he had cast on Salazar.

Out of his periphery Godric saw Salazar's body slump to the ground, breath crackling as if his throat had dried out.

Godric swung, but the Necromancer just disappeared from in front of him, and moved to the side, casting spell after spell.

Godric dodged and turned, trying to keep up with the Necromancer, but was having trouble with him, his army of undead, and keeping Salazar behind him so he wouldn't be hurt again.

Godric quickly decapitated one of the undead, and then used a blasting curse to blow up the remains.

A green curse flew by his shoulder, and Godric dodged and threw up his shield after sending a barrage of cutting and blasting curses at the Necromancer.

He took another step to the left, and then froze.

Or rather, he was frozen in place unable to move. He scanned the ground and felt his heart triple in speed. He had stepped into some kind of warding scheme.

"And that is that," The Necromancer grinned, and Godric tried to force up a shield, but it wasn't working. However the Necromancer had set up the wards, it was something he couldn't negate.

"Oh, I know that crest," the man walked forward and poked Godric's shoulder.

"A Gryffindor wizard! Oh how cute!'' the man grinned, and if Godric had been able to move, he would have taken a step back to get away from the insane look on his face.

"And you brought me Salazar! I really should thank you for that, in fact, I will let you die second!" the man hadn't stopped smiling, and then his eyes glanced down at the sword in Godric's hand.

"Oh, now that is a beauty, are those magic crystals? How did you get those?" the man mumbled, and took the sword from Godric's hand.

"Now this is an appropriate gift," the man swung the sword once, and gave Godric another smile.

"I think I know exactly what to do with this, don't you?" and the man began to walk over to Salazar.

Godric swore and cursed and tried to move, but couldn't do anything as he watched the man move over to Salazar's prone body and use a foot to flip him so he was face up.

Salazar's face was red and blotchy, eyes half open, and he kept trying to take breaths of air but it was as if breathing hurt to much to actually try. His entire body was shaking, and he didn't even seem to realize that the Necromancer was standing in front of him.

Someone else had though, and suddenly Doireann launched herself at the necromancer.

Godric felt a surge of relief, and then overwhelming horror as the man simply batted the basilisk away.

 _And then hissed at it._

Godric's heart was pounding in his chest, and he watched with overwhelming dread as another friend of his was about to be killed.

He would not let it happen again.

And maybe it was the reminder of Slytherin's basilisk, or maybe it was how far gone Godric was in his need to save Salazar, but suddenly Godric remembered something.

He couldn't nullify anything how he was, but maybe he could _stop_ negating something.

And so he did.

The Necromancer raised the sword, and then froze, sword slipping from his grasp as he keeled over.

The magic that was keeping Godric in place faded, and he stumbled over to where Salazar lay.

"Salazar, Sal, buddy, I...what do you need?" Godric ran his hand over Salazar's face and realized that it was hot, much to hot.

The kid didn't even seem to recognize him, eyes still glazed.

Godric felt something slide next to him, and began to pull on something in his pack.

Doireann was poking and prodding at his water pouch, so Godric took it. He carefully levered Salazar up, ignoring the small amount of tears that escaped from his eyes, and began to trickle water into his mouth.

Godric slowly and carefully fed Salazar the water, and then poured a little out onto a cloth and placed it on his face.

He set the kid down for a moment, and grabbed his sword, once again negating the cockatrice leather hilt. He dragged the necromancer's body into a nearby bush, he would deal with that as soon as Salazar was better.

"Where should we go?" Godric looked down at the basilisk that was curled around his leg, and the snake scented the air for a moment, before moving off of the road.

Godric carefully lifted Salazar, and followed the snake. It led them to a small gravelly area next to a river. Godric checked the water and it was quite cold, which might be exactly what the kid needed.

"Can you watch him for a minute? I need to get rid of the necromancer," Godric looked at the basilisk, who nodded and arched its neck as looked around the area.

Godric went back to where he had hid the necromancer. He took the guys pack and wand, then burned the body.

He came back to the clearing, and dropped his stuff down. He set up a small sleeping area, and then grabbed a cloak he had in his pack. He went to the stream and carefully soaked the cloak, ringing it out to get rid of the excess water.

Godric stripped Salazar until he was in his braies, and then carefully began to cover and dab at him with the soaked cloak.

"So you know any potions we can use?" he asked the basilisk once again, and the snake disappeared into Salazar's cloak.

(Which Godric was both surprised and unsurprised with how many knives and potion vials that thing held.)

Some annoyed hissing later, and Doireann had carefully lugged two potions out.

"Alright then," Godric tilted Salazar up once more, and poured the potions down his throat.

A rough moan passed through the kid's lips, but the shaking had stopped, and he seemed to be heading back to a normal temperature.

Godric spent the rest of the night taking care of Salazar, and come morning light he looked a lot better, and was sleeping peacefully.

Godric slipped into sleep himself, and only woke when the sound of hissing filled his ears.

Blinking his eyes open he saw Salazar propping himself up on his elbows, and hissing gently at Doireann.

"Whoa, no! You are not getting up!" Godric got to his feet and carefully pushed Salazar back down.

Doireann seemed to be hissing in victory, and Salazar had a sour look on his face.

"I'm fine," the kid grumbled, but didn't try to get up again.

Godric didn't even smile, "What happened, and do you need anything?"

Salazar looked up at him," Water...if you could."

Godric nodded and quickly came over with his water pouch which he had refilled at the river.

He helped Salazar carefully sip at the water, and then smiled at the content look on the kid's face when he leaned back down.

"Doireann says you killed him?" Salazar questioned, eyes dulled with the need for sleep.

"Yup, I have cockatrice leather as the hilt for my sword, and he realized that a bit too late," Godric smiled, and Salazar smiled back.

"Good...idea..." Salazar was struggling to stay awake.

"Before yous sleep, what did he do to you, and how do you know him?" Godric nudged at his shoulder, and Salazar grumbled in disgust.

"It was...hot..and dry...everything burned...and I met him before, on the streets. It was years ago. He felt...bad...really bad...read his mind... _really bad_...wanted something from me...and other things...I ran, don't know," Salazar slowly fell back asleep.

Godric stared at the pale teen in front of him, hand unconsciously running through his hair.

Godric carefully got up, started a fire, and then began to go through the bastard's pack.

He ended up burning most of the items inside because they were just _dark, sick and just plain_ _ **wrong**_. He pulled out some papers, but they all seemed to be texts on spells, spells that Godric wanted nothing to do with.

He ended up just burning everything, not wanting to let any remainders of the necromancer. He even burned the wand.

Salazar woke again later that evening, and chugged down another potion, looking much better. He staggered over to the fire, and sat a little ways away curled in on himself.

"I'm pretty sure he spoke parseltongue," Godric spoke, and looked over at Salazar.

Salazar bit his lip, "That...narrows it down a lot...he could have been from one of the Slytherin side families?"

Godric shrugged, "Well he is dead now, so at least that is done with."

Salazar nodded again, and Doireann slid up his arm to rest on top of his head.

Godric smiled, and stirred the stew.

~~.~~

Some months later, Godric and Salazar found themselves in a small inn, relaxing after a hectic fight.

"I'm telling you, you really shouldn't go charging in like that, it makes you seem to be an idiot. Now, I already know that, but you might try to fool your enemy for at least a few seconds!" Salazar grumbled around his mug, already nearly halfway down with his drink.

Godric grinned, unrepentant, ""Call me a fool, but I think giving them fair warning that they have no hope of winning is better for it."

Salazar sighed, which Godric ignored, and he took another mouthful of his drink. Salazar's eyes slid past him and locked onto something. Godric turned and was saw a small woman with bright red hair, nearly the same shade as his own walking towards them.

She smiled at both of them, and Godric invited her to sit with them, ignoring Salazar's baleful glare.

"Hello, my name is Helga Hufflepuff, and I heard from a friend you might be interested in something I am working on."

* * *

I can now die, geez Godric! How could you be so difficult! Gah~  
Also Salazar, I love you, but please stop talking, the amount of banter I had to get rid of was astronomical.

The next chapter will be about Ravenclaw, and I would like to have a warning before hand that it may take me a while because her past is the _worst_ of all the founders.

Thank you for reading! Please leave a review on your way out!

I'm also thinking of doing a few side stories for Godric's and Salazar's adventures, there were just too many to fit in here :)

And thanks to Rikkamaru and all my friends who put up with me complaining about Godric.

~Not Necessarily in Between


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